Police arrest and charge first alleged abuser with new non-fatal strangulation legislation

Police in Fermanagh have arrested and charged a 47 year-old man with a number of offences including non-fatal strangulation against a 45 year-old female. He is due to appear at Strabane court today, 29th June. As is normal procedure all charges are reviewed by the Public Prosecution Service.This comes only three days since non-fatal strangulation or asphyxiation (under The Justice Sexual Offences and Trafficking Victims Act NI 2022) was made a specific criminal offence in Northern Ireland, punishable by up to 14 years’ imprisonment.Detective Superintendent Lindsay Fisher from the Service’s Public Protection Branch said:“On Monday, we communicated to the public about a landmark piece of legislation being made operational in Northern Ireland.“Already, we have been able to act in safeguarding a potential victim and make the first arrest and charge of this nature. “This only serves to reiterate our commitment to tackling this horrific crime. It will not be tolerated in our communities. Over 1,500 frontline officers and staff have already been trained to recognise and respond and we will continue to use every tool at our disposal to bring potential offenders to justice.”Throughout this week and beyond Police will be continuing to work with partners to raise awareness of this crime type and encourage more victims to come forward.

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