A Hampshire man has been jailed for three years for offences including suffocation and stalking involving fear of violence. 

Ashley Vickers, 46, of no fixed address, pleaded guilty to the offences, which also included two counts of disclosing or threatening to disclose sexual images with intent to cause distress.

During one of the incidents, Vickers placed a bag over his victim's head.

He also subjected her to stalking by calling her continuously, turning up at her place of work, and making multiple threats towards her and her family, putting her in fear of violence.

As well as being jailed he was handed a restraining order and was also told to pay a victim services surcharge.

Vickers, formerly of Whiteley, committed the offences in the Hamble area in 2022 and 2023. He was jailed at Portsmouth Crown Court.

Det Con Ryan White, of Eastleigh District Investigations, said: "It took a great deal of courage and bravery for the victim to come forward in this case.

“I am so grateful to her for fully supporting our investigation and never doubting our ability to get a conviction in court.

“I am so pleased for her that justice has now been served in this case, and that she has now seen him put behind bars, where he belongs.

“While I know the result itself won’t rid her of the memories of what he did to her, I truly hope that it allows her to move forward with her life, safe in the knowledge that he can no longer harm anybody else.

“I also hope this sentence will reassure other victims that they will be listened to when reporting similar incidents to us.

“We encourage other victims to come forward and speak to us. We take allegations of this nature extremely seriously and work hard to bring offenders to justice.

“This should also be a very clear message to other offenders out there that we will always work tirelessly to ensure you are brought to justice.

“This case is also another example of the hard work we are doing to prevent domestic abuse and bring offenders to justice."

"We recognise that not everyone has the confidence to speak to police, but there are support services available that can help you if you are a victim of domestic abuse."

Anyone who has been a victim of similar crimes can contact Hampshire police on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.