Oldham man jailed for rape and violence against women

Steven Blades was convicted of a number of offences, including rape and indecent assault

A man who carried out "unspeakable acts of violence and cruelty" over many years has been jailed.

Steven Blades, 53, subjected his three victims to physical and mental abuse including raping and threatening to kill them.

The Crown Prosecution Service said he had used "every form of torture to terrify and control women".

Blades, of Oldham, was jailed for 25 years at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court.

Greater Manchester Police said the abuse started in the 1980s when Blades assaulted and inflicted "violent and sinister assaults" on a woman.

This included Blades placing an air rifle in the woman's mouth and threatening to fire it when she would not comply with his demands, the force said.

He would also burn her with boiling water and an iron, used everyday objects as weapons to torture her within her own home and broke her leg by jumping on it.

'Horrendous and evil'

Sophie Rozdolskyj, a senior crown prosecutor, described Blades, of Clarksfield Street, as an "extremely dangerous man".

"His unspeakable acts of violence and cruelty are some of the worst I have ever encountered," she said.

"He caused them serious physical and psychological harm by putting out cigarettes on them and raping them.

"He also isolated them from their families and caused them to doubt their own minds."

Blades was found guilty of making threats to kill, two counts of grievous bodily harm, seven counts of actual bodily harm, indecent assault, two counts of rape, cruelty to a person under 16 years old and controlling and coercive behaviour.

He was also handed a further eight years of probation.

Det Con Heather Yarker said the injuries and torrent of abuse "was horrendous and nothing short of evil".

"The level of abuse experienced by these women is incomprehensible," she said.

Why not follow BBC North West on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram? You can also send story ideas to [e-mail]