Ashley Bewick

Ashley Bewick, a 38-year-old prison officer employed at HMP Chelmsford in Essex, appeared before Ipswich Crown Court on Monday, where he pleaded guilty to a series of serious sexual and violent offences committed against two women. The charges, spanning from 2008, included five counts of rape, three counts of sexual assault, four counts of actual bodily harm, three counts of intentional suffocation, two counts of attempted rape, one count of non-fatal strangulation, and one count of intentional strangulation. Bewick, who has been on remand since May last year, struggled to utter the word 'guilty' during the proceedings, which were set to begin a ten-day trial before his admissions.

The court heard harrowing details of the abuse, particularly against the first victim, whom Bewick subjected to relentless physical and sexual violence. Incidents included stamping on her foot, leaving her unable to walk for several days, and repeated strangulation and suffocation. The abuse escalated to such an extent that the victim pleaded with Bewick to kill her 'to put her out of her misery', highlighting the profound psychological toll. A second woman was the victim of the sexual assaults. The prosecution offered no evidence on a sixth count of rape, leading Judge Nicola Talbot-Hadley to enter a not guilty verdict on that charge.

Bewick, of no fixed address, attempted to make eye contact with his family in the public gallery but was ignored as he was led away by a dock officer. Judge Talbot-Hadley indicated that a pre-sentence report would not be necessary given the severity of the offences, stating, 'I don’t think the usual pre-sentence report would be needed given the type of sentencing we are looking at.' She emphasised the importance of the complainants' voices being heard, noting, 'Both complainants must make their own decision as to whether they want to be here [for the sentencing] – the important thing is that their voice is heard.' Sentencing was scheduled for the following Friday.

The case was reported by Daniel Rees, Senior Crime and Court Reporter for the Gazette and Herald, drawing on court proceedings at Ipswich Crown Court. Essex Police were involved in the investigation, given the location of the offences in Essex.