John Gizzi Jailed for Coercive Control and Strangulation of Sister

According to BBC UK, John Gizzi, who is 55 and resides in St Asaph, Denbighshire, was sentenced to four years and 11 months after admitting guilt to coercive and controlling behavior directed at Natasha Farah, 32, and for the intentional strangulation of her sister. Gizzi appeared at the hearing via video link from prison, and shouts of "scumbag" and "rot in hell" were heard from the public gallery directed at him.

Farah's mother stated that she intends to advocate in her daughter's name for longer sentences regarding coercive and controlling behavior. The court learned that a series of physical and verbal assaults by Gizzi against Farah came to light following a suspected suicide attempt by Farah, which resulted in severe brain damage.

Judge Mills stated that Gizzi employed "dreadful misogynistic language" toward Farah, which was described as being "part of the process of humiliation" and "destroy[ing]" her self-worth. Farah's mother, who wore a T-shirt reading "Justice for Natasha," delivered a detailed victim impact statement, expressing her desire to elaborate on the "sheer devastating" effect of Gizzi's conduct and the "pain, grief, anger, torture" he inflicted.

Judge Mills noted that Natasha was frequently observed with bruises, and that Gizzi had assaulted her at times using a dumbbell. He mentioned that Gizzi had assaulted her on both Valentine's Day and Mother's Day.

Details presented to the court included instances where Gizzi repeatedly followed Farah, attacked her in her vehicle, and sent numerous messages containing abusive language. In September 2025, Farah was discovered after another apparent suicide attempt, and a call to emergency services recorded Gizzi physically and verbally abusing Farah's mother, Denise. Although the police were notified, Denise subsequently withdrew the complaint.

Some of Gizzi's abuse was captured on public CCTV cameras, leading to his arrest following one such incident in January 2025. When police attempted to secure a domestic protection order, Farah chose not to cooperate, resulting in the magistrates declining to issue the order.

Farah's sister, Samantha, witnessed repeated instances of abuse and was herself attacked by Gizzi at a pub in Colwyn Bay, which led to a charge of strangulation—one of the three charges Gizzi pleaded guilty to at a hearing last month. Furthermore, Gizzi also received a concurrent four-month sentence for his failure to provide the pin number for his mobile device to the police after his arrest.

Elen Owen, the prosecutor, informed the court that while the Crown did not prove Gizzi was responsible for the events of April 7th when Farah was found attempting suicide at her flat in Rhos on Sea, the discovery of Farah led to an investigation that uncovered a pattern of physical and verbal abuse by Gizzi. Owen detailed a sequence of attacks and abuse inflicted by Gizzi on Farah between March 2025 and April 2026, including an incident at a gym where Gizzi threw objects at her when she approached him for keys, and another reported physical assault at the same gym by Farah to a friend.

Judge Mills acknowledged the events of April 7th that left Farah in an unresponsive state with serious brain damage but stated there was no offense in the indictment making Gizzi directly responsible. He added that if circumstances or further evidence changed, North Wales Police would investigate, though it was not a matter for the current hearing. The judge concluded that Gizzi would never be forgiven for what people believed he did to Farah, and that this would follow him throughout his life.