“He would make remarks about household objects making a good murder weapon, other comments to do with getting rid of me, getting what I deserved.”
At first, she says, she didn’t take seriously those comments by her then-husband.
“It wasn’t until the relationship fully ended that I actually understood how much danger I was actually in and how abnormal and dangerous the comments were.”
They were a feature of a relationship, she alleges, that was a story of domestic abuse and sexual violence.
And the alleged perpetrator, her ex-husband, is a serving police officer.
For 19 months, since she first reported the abuse, she says his employer West Yorkshire Police has refused to investigate her allegations of domestic abuse.
“It’s been an uphill battle to even have them take anything seriously. It makes you feel worthless when you’ve come from that sort of relationship, it kind of reinforces that feeling of my words don’t matter.
“If anything, I wouldn’t feel safe calling 999 because I wouldn’t trust, given what’s happened, that they would even bother coming out at all.”
She has asked not to be identified for her safety.
West Yorkshire Police says an officer has been suspended and they have referred themselves to the Independent Office for Police Conduct
She said domestic violence that began with “slamming things, shouting, belittling, name-calling” escalated to having items thrown at her and having to hide in a room from her partner. She also alleges sexual violence.
After being contacted by Sky News, West Yorkshire Police said it couldn’t discuss the case in detail.
In a statement, the force added: “We encourage anyone who is a victim of domestic abuse to contact us.
“Allegations are taken seriously, including allegations involving West Yorkshire Police officers and staff and will always be fully investigated.
“A West Yorkshire Police Officer has been suspended as part of the enquiry and the matter has been referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct.
“West Yorkshire Police is absolutely committed to tackling violence against women and girls and to robustly investigating all allegations of sexual violence and domestic abuse.”
The woman says she wanted to speak out after seeing police video of the arrest of PC David Carrick – later convicted of dozens of offences against women
The woman said she was prompted to speak out after seeing the video of the arrest of Metropolitan Police officer David Carrick – later jailed for life for dozens of offences against women – in which he tells arresting officers about his police service.
“At the end of the day, a police perpetrator is actually the most dangerous type of perpetrator. It’s a scary place to be where you feel that nobody’s on the other side of that phone to come and help you. It’s petrifying.”
Read more:
Police officer tells of rape by David Carrick
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In January, the National Police Chiefs’ Council wrote to all chief constables in England and Wales asking them to take immediate action to identify any intelligence or allegations about officers that needed further investigation.
However, the woman said: “All these forces say they’re taking it seriously, but they’re actually not… and I’m a prime example in the current climate, they’re not taking it seriously at all.”
