Police officer who told woman her Peaky Blinders actor partner had no history of violence before attack set to keep job
A MUM has told how she “could have died because of police negligence” after they wrongly said her Peaky Blinders actor partner had never been reported for domestic abuse – weeks before he brutally assaulted her.
Hairdresser Lyndsey Yarwood, then 35, had made inquiries into her partner Oliver Cox’s past under Clare’s Law but a member of Wiltshire Police’s domestic violence team told her he was clean.
However Cox, who was an extra in Peaky Blinders, had previously attacked an ex-girlfriend and beaten a woman on a night out in Newcastle.
Just weeks after her inquiry, Cox, then 33, attacked Lyndsey and left her with two black eyes and bruises all over her body.
Lyndsey only found out about Cox’s history after speaking out about her ordeal on social media and being contacted by his victims.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct have now said a member of Wiltshire Police’s domestic violence disclosure team had a case to answer for misconduct.
Since the horrifying attack in December 2018, Lyndsey has had to move house, change her car and phone number but says she had not received any apology from the force.
Clare’s Law – named after Clare Wood who was murdered in 2009 – allows people to apply to the police to find out if their partner has a history of domestic violence behaviour.
Lyndsey, from Melksham, Wiltshire, said: “It’s taken a long time [for the report to be published].
“Hopefully it’ll encourage other police to check properly – including any name changes and on the internet.
“This will save lives. People won’t be able to slip through the net as easily.
“I feel 100 percent let down by Wiltshire Police. I haven’t had a letter, an apology or any correspondence. I could have died because of their negligence.
“I could have lost my life or my kids.”
She added: “I’m too scared to have a new partner now. I don’t believe anything anyone says.
“I have a normal life now, really, but the scars are still there.”
Despite pleading guilty to assault causing actual bodily harm, Cox’s 18-month sentence was suspended for two years, which meant he walked free from court.
Lyndsey first met Cox on Plenty of Fish in early 2018 and just a month after they had met face-to-face in August that year, he proposed.
Just three months later, he viciously attacked Lyndsey in a hotel room.
Wiltshire Police were aware of Lyndsey’s attack in January 2019 but there was a “significant delay” in the force referring the issue to the watchdog, according to the IOPC report.
The force have now agreed to retrain two staff while one member of the force will be given “management action”.
No one has lost their job as a result of the blunder.
A spokesperson for Wiltshire Police said: “We can confirm that this initial complaint was referred to our Professional Standards Department in the first instance and a review was carried out to determine what happened in this case and why a disclosure was not made.
“Following this, the complaint was referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).
“The IOPC conducted an independent investigation into the case which found that one member of police staff had a case to answer for misconduct and they have since been given additional training on how checks of this nature should be conducted.
“As the report states, as a result of this incident we have since proactively updated and amended the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme process so that all ‘right to ask’ applications now result in a face to face meeting.
“This enables the DVDS team to build a rapport with the applicant and provides an opportunity for further, more in-depth questions to be asked.”
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In response to the IOPC report, a spokesperson for Refuge, the national domestic abuse helpline, said “women need to feel empowered by the criminal justice system, not disappointed by it.”
Sandra Horley CBE, chief executive of Refuge, said: “What sort of message does this send to survivors?”