Tina Nash, from Cornwall, says she lives in fear her attacker Shane Jenkin will return to ‘finish her off’ after learning of a fresh development in the case
A mother-of-two who had her eyes gouged out by her former partner has said she fears he will return to ‘finish her off’ after learning he has been transferred to an open prison.
Tina Nash, 44, was blinded by Shane Jenkin in April 2011 as he held her captive for 12 hours during which he strangled her, broke her nose and jaw and gouged out her eyes as her two kids slept in the room next door. In 2012, Jenkin, 45, was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of six years after admitting to grievous bodily harm (GBH) from the savage attack.
In the following 13 years, he would see six parole bids rejected but, in March, has been moved to an open prison, to Tina’s dismay. In an open prison Jenkin is eligible to leave for short periods of time under licence to take part in paid or unpaid work or to see a family member who is seriously ill.
Tina, from Cornwall, says she fears for her safety and the safety of other women after learning of his relocation. “I’m really scared, because I don’t think he’ll leave it, especially because I’ve spoken out about what he’s done,” Ms Nash said. “I think that he has been sitting there this whole entire time kicking himself that he did not finish me off.”
Criminal behavioural analyst and former head of the Homicide Prevention Unit of the Metropolitan Police, Laura Richards has criticised the decision to grant Jenkin this partial freedom, saying she is “appalled”. She explained: “I’m extremely concerned about the decision to move Jenkin to an open prison, readying him for release after such a short time and given his appalling and sadistic violent acts to Tina. There is too much weight and focus on Jenkin’s ‘right to freedom’ rather than where it should be, on Tina’s right to life and safety and the safety of the public.”
Tina met Jenkin two years before the attack, in 2009, at a club in Penzance. She describes the first eight months of their relationship as loving until he “turned on her”. She went on: “The first time that he actually properly turned on me and actually beat me up was in April 2010,” she said. “Then in that last year it was just nothing but beatings, strangulations, it was just constant the police raiding my house. I’ve never felt like on edge before in all my life. I didn’t even know I was a victim.”
Tina describes the horrors of the night of the attack and how her then-partner had rolled her up in a blanket as he continued to strangle her. “I didn’t know what was going on – I didn’t know I was blind,” she said. “I was touching the left side of my cheek, and I felt my eyeball down on my cheek, I couldn’t believe it. I don’t remember him jumping on me. I don’t remember him beating me. I don’t remember him gouging my eyes out. I don’t remember him rolling me up. He thought I was dead.”
Despite undergoing several operations, surgeons were unable to save Tina’s vision and she has since had reconstructive surgery to implant prosthetic eyes. Jenkin, who is 6ft 4in, was sentenced at Truro Crown Court in May 2012 and detained in a secure mental health unit. Tina said the attack by him has “completely ruined” her life.
She added: “I try every single day to stay positive, but no matter what, it’s still always there, and it’s not going away. I dream every single night and it feels like I’ve just lost my sight yesterday. I was a free spirit, I loved life, I was a DJ – I loved being out with my friends. All the panic attacks and the anxiety attacks just ruined me as a person. The amount of days and years that I sat downstairs on my own on the edge of the sofa, tortured, shaking, freaking out – he’ll never know what he’s done to me.”
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson has said that each prisoner must pass a “robust risk assessment” before being moved to an open prison facility. They said: “This was a horrific crime and our thoughts remain with Ms Nash. “All prisoners, including those serving life sentences, must pass a robust risk assessment before any move to open conditions and we do not hesitate to move them back to closed prisons if they break the rules.”
Tina has set up a fundraiser on GoFundMe to raise money for security improvements at her home if Jenkin is released, which you can view here.
