Man films himself sexually abusing a woman and shooting her hamster with an air rifle

A judge has slammed a vile Essex man who filmed himself sexually assaulting a woman before threatening to share the footage on WhatsApp – leaving the woman “feeling guilty and ashamed”. Bradley Smith has been jailed for 12 years after insinuating himself into his victim’s life.

In reality, the 43-year-old, from Imperial Avenue in Chelmsford, used extreme measures to keep the woman in his power, the court heard. For example, he shot her hamster with an air rifle and then sent her a picture of it. On one occasion, Smith filmed himself sexually abusing the woman and then threatened to post the footage on a WhatsApp group when she tried to break away from him.

Smith was arrested in November 2021 after the woman found the courage to report him to the police. In May this year, a jury convicted him of two counts of assault on a woman by penetration and controlling and coercive behaviour after a two-week trial at Chelmsford Crown Court. He had previously admitted publishing private sexual photographs and films with the intent to cause her distress.

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In a statement read out to court at Smith’s sentencing on Friday (June 21), the woman said she felt “sick and confused” when Smith showed her the footage of the sexual assault, which had been filmed without her knowledge. She said: “He had a way of making me feel like it was all my fault. I felt wracked with guilt, embarrassment and shame. It was the very last thing I wanted to talk about. I felt confused and sick.”

“I was still looking for excuses for what had happened and my mind was telling me it was all my fault. I had a coping mechanism to block it out and pretend it didn’t happen. (During the police investigation) I had nowhere to hide and I felt scared and vulnerable again. I felt backed into a corner. Every time the officer made contact with me it filled me with fear.

“I couldn’t handle what was happening. After speaking to the officer, I disappeared for weeks. I felt like I had brought this all on myself and I didn’t feel like I deserved to complain.”

She continued: “He has a habit of twisting scenarios to make it seem like he was the victim and I would always end up apologizing. I was so manipulated from so early on. Everything seemed like a struggle, it was so exhausting. Sometimes I wanted to give up and not be here at all.

“He made me feel like I was making a mountain out of a molehill. I constantly question myself. The statement was humiliating. (At one point) I locked myself in the bathroom and couldn’t bear the thought of coming out. He made me feel like a liar. I lost all self-respect and self-esteem. His behavior was so cruel, but I felt like I deserved it. I see that he was just manipulating me.”

The victim said she felt in “self-destruct mode” and was “numb and emotionless.” She also had to leave her home and could not return to her parents’ house because she felt unsafe since Smith knew their addresses.

Judge Mary Loram KC praised the woman for her bravery and told Smith he had “deliberately caused distress” to a vulnerable person he claimed to care about. She said: “You told her to kill herself and that her family would be better off without her. You did this enthusiastically and repeatedly.”

The judge went on to say that he had caused the victim “extreme distress” by filming the sexual assault and said “Shame on you” in her verdict. Smith was sentenced to 12 years in prison with an extended four-year probation period. Judge Loram imposed an indefinite restraining order prohibiting him from having any contact with the victim.