Woman jailed after domestic abuse lies put ex in prison

Kirsty Barr was jailed after earlier pleading guilty to perverting the course of justice

A woman whose repeated lies about being assaulted led to her ex-partner being sent to prison has herself been jailed.

Kirsty Barr, 24, from Barton in North Lincolnshire, made up claims Ryan Kerrison had cut her and put a gun to her head among other abuse.

He was given a restraining order and, after further lies from Barr, he spent two months in prison on remand.

Barr was jailed for three years and nine months after earlier admitting perverting the course of justice.

After her sentencing at Hull Crown Court on Friday, Humberside Police said Barr, of St Chad's Way, had put Mr Kerrison through the "most excruciating ordeal".

Barr had made up a string of lies, claiming her ex-partner had repeatedly harassed and assaulted her, Humberside Police said.

'Devious and malicious agenda'

In December 2018, she called 999 claiming Mr Kerrison had chased her up the stairs and assaulted her, before cutting her with a knife and throwing her down the stairs.

She told police he had then put a gun to her head, the force said.

Due to the violent allegations, a full armed police response was sent and Mr Kerrison was further arrested.

However, police said evidence and witness statements proved he could not have committed the offences, prompting an investigation into Barr herself, who was later charged.

Ch Supt Christine Wilson, from Humberside Police, said Mr Kerrison had been "accused and depicted as a monster by a woman who had her own devious and malicious agenda to try and ruin his life".

She added: "Ryan has had to watch everything he had vanish in the blink of an eye, being incarcerated for crimes he didn't commit and unable to be with his daughter - all because his ex-partner decided she would manipulate the system to see Ryan suffer."

Ch Supt Wilson said Barr had "portrayed Ryan to the whole country through national and social media as a violent man she was terrified of".

She added: "In reality, Ryan is the one who was suffering a tirade of abuse from the vicious and false allegations."