A MAN has been found guilty of committing a grave and criminal assault against a woman at her flat just two days after matching with her on a dating app.
Conor James (34) left his date “covered in blood” and “genuinely fearing for her life” when he embarked on a course of “brutal” and “senseless” violence at her St Helier address in the early hours of 16 March 2025.
The “serious and prolonged” assault saw the “intoxicated” former Mind Jersey volunteer smack his victim over the head with a chair, before strangling her and destroying her mobile phone.
The complainant sent several “desperate” texts to friends throughout the night as the date spiralled “out of control”, including one that simply read: “Help”.
In another message, she told a friend that the man in her flat “won’t leave” her flat, adding: “He’s drunk and unpredictable, what do I do?”
In the Royal Court yesterday, jurors retired for three hours and five minutes before finding James guilty of grave and criminal assault by a majority of 11 to one.
He was also found guilty by a majority of 10 to two on one count of malicious damage.
Commissioner Caroline Wright, presiding, informed James: “You’ve been convicted by this jury of extremely serious offences. In my judgement, they are ones in which you should be contemplating the immediate custodial sentence that they deserve.”
Crown Advocate Matthew Maletroit, prosecuting, previously described the case as an instance of “online dating gone horribly wrong”.
“What began as a perfectly innocent meeting arranged through a dating app, ended with brutal, senseless violence,” he told jurors.
“[The woman] thought that the defendant was going to kill her there and then, as her children lay in their beds just meters away in their bedrooms next door.”
Upon arrest, James claimed to have “had no recollection” of assaulting the woman.
“It’s painful to think I could do such a thing. But who else could it be? The Bogeyman?”, he said to officers.
Giving evidence, the woman said she remembered “blood trickling down my face” and “being pinned down on the floor while my head was repeatedly punched”.
“I just kept thinking, ‘how am I going to make this stop?’,” she said.
In his closing speech, Advocate Maletroit said the woman had suffered a “horrendous and no doubt traumatic experience” after “innocently” connecting with James on a dating app.
James was remanded in custody ahead of a sentencing in the Royal Court at a date still to be fixed.
DC Bogdan Jagodka said: “This was a serious and sustained assault which left the victim with significant injuries and genuinely fearing for her life.
“While alcohol and substance use were factors in this case, they do not excuse or justify violent behaviour. Responsibility lies entirely with the offender.
“This type of offending reflects the harm we continue to see in cases of violence against women and girls, and we are committed to working with partners to prevent abuse, support victims, and bring those responsible before the courts.
“I would like to commend the victim for her courage in reporting what happened and supporting the case through to court.”
