Peterborough man who assaulted wife and banned her from speaking in ‘reign of terror’ jailed

Masoud Saleh, 37, of Almond Road, Peterborough, controlled the victim’s finances and forbade her from using social media.

Throughout their marriage, Saleh threatened to kill her many times and even told her he would pay others to do it for him.

On one occasion, he strangled and choked her and then slashed her arm with a kitchen knife.

During an argument at their home in April 2020, he grabbed her by her throat, told her she was not allowed to talk and then threatened to kill her. The assault left her with bruises and pain but she was too afraid to see a doctor. Saleh told her if she went to the police he would kill her.

In January last year, the pair, who have four children together, were arguing in the living room when Saleh grabbed her by the throat, pinned her against a wall and squeezed for several seconds, resulting in bruising and marks on her throat.

In another incident in August, Saleh began to pinch her windpipe and push it inwards, causing her to choke. The next morning, he approached her in the kitchen and said, “I have a surprise for you,” at which point he produced a kitchen knife. He then placed her hand around the handle and forced her to cut her own arm.

At Peterborough Crown Court today (Thursday 17 February), Saleh was sentenced to eight years in prison after previously pleading guilty to four counts of making threats to kill and two counts of causing actual bodily harm (ABH).

Detective Sergeant Matt Lauch, who investigated, said: “This was a terrifying ordeal over a prolonged period of time that left the victim and her young children fearing for their lives.

“Instead of being loved by the man she married, her life was made a living nightmare. She genuinely believed that Saleh would kill her and I am pleased that she reached out to us when she did.

“This kind of behaviour is cowardly and despicable and I urge anyone experiencing any kind of domestic abuse to contact us, or our partners – there are lots of different ways that we can help you and your family to stay safe.”

More information about domestic abuse and how we can help can be found on the dedicated pages of the police website via https://bit.ly/3sGYmGM.

You can report crimes online by using our website www.cambs.police.uk/report or by calling 101. Always dial 999 in an emergency.