A vicious man strangled his partner before punching her, threatening to hit her with a brick and throwing a bucket of water over her head. Olekjii Dzen subjected his partner to two separate incidents in Cardiff which saw her fear for her life and safety. A sentencing at Cardiff Crown Court on Monday heard how Dzen, 39, first got angry at his partner in January 2023 when she refused to sit with him as he drank alcohol.
Prosecuting, Pamela Kaiga told the court: Late one evening of that month the defendant wanted [his partner] to sit with him at the table while he drank. She refused as she had to go to sleep. She went to bed and the defendant followed her up a short time afterwards. While she was in bed the defendant approached her and placed his hands around her neck, pressing against it. This lasted around one minute. She described how she felt she was going to die.
The second incident happened several weeks later, when Dzen assaulted his partner after she ran away from him in fear. Ms Kaiga told the court: The second incident happened on February 15, 2024. [His partner] had returned home from work to find the defendant intoxicated. The defendant asked her for money. He then proceeded to grab her by her shoulder and upper back and pushed her into the kitchen. Out of fear, she ran into the garden, but the defendant ran after her.”
“He then punched her with his fist three times to the head and one time to her back. He then picked up a brick and pushed it against her neck, threatening to hit her with it. After that, he picked up a bucket which had collected rainwater and threw it over her…[She] managed to get away and call the police.†Ms Kaiga said this resulted in red marks to the victim’s neck.
She went on to describe another incident which saw Dzen slap his victim hard in the face, leaving a red mark. The prosecutor added that Dzens behaviour was aggravated by several factors including that it happened in a domestic setting and included a threat of the use of a weapon. The court heard how Dzen – who is now of no fixed abode – was of clean character with no previous convictions. He moved to Wales from Ukraine in 2022 for refuge, along with his partner.
Dzen, who is deaf, required sign language and translation assistance during the sentencing. Josh Scouller, defending, said his clients remorse was clear to see. He said Dzen entered guilty pleas for one count of strangulation and two counts of assault at his earliest opportunity. He said: As a result of these offences he has had to split from his family. His partner does not wish to resume the relationship he moved to this country as a result of the war. Life has been very difficult for [Dzen] in this country, in a large part due to the isolation he has felt. He has been unable to work.
Addressing Dzen, Judge Simon Mills stressed the seriousness of his actions. Referring to the strangulation offence, he said: This sort of offence is taken very seriously by the courts. Often committed by men on their wives or partners, it often causes little visible injury, but can often cause death or very serious injury. The neck contains vulnerable vital structures. He took into account Dzens vulnerabilities including that he had escaped war, is deaf and has been unable to find work.
He added: Your problem has been that you have drunk too much and too often and that led you to fail to give your partner the respect [she] deserves. Judge Mills sentenced Dzen to 12 months immediate imprisonment. He will serve 10 months for the strangulation offence with two months to run concurrently for assaulting his partner, as well as an additional two months to run consecutively for a second assault incident. Dzen will serve up to half of the sentence in prison before being released on licence.