Man cleared of assaulting 'cocaine-snorting escort' ex

Timothy Power of Malvern was found not guilty of assault by beating upon his former partner in Pinvin after she made an allegation he grabbed her by the face and threw her onto a bed.

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However, the 32-year-old of Preece Close, Malvern, already admitted possession of cocaine, possession of cannabis, driving while disqualified, driving without insurance and drug driving when he appeared before magistrates on Monday.

GUILTY: Tim Power was cleared of assault but admitted a string of other drug and driving charges

Magistrates said the account given by Power, who has seven previous convictions for 15 offences, to be 'credible' after he gave evidence from the witness box.

Power, who works for AA Insurance, described his former partner as a 'cocaine addict' and said that she was 'still on an escort site' when they were together.

A 999 call was played in court in which the complainant was heard sobbing, screaming and saying 'get off me!' as she spoke to the operator about Power.

Power can also be heard on the recording calling the complainant a 'liar' and telling officers: "I haven't touched her."

Sobbing, she later claimed she was trying to stop him drug driving by taking his car keys from him during the incident on July 16 last year, telling officers: "He started having a go at me for blowing my nose."

TRIAL: The trial was heard at Worcester Magistrates Court (Image: Newsquest)

Photos of the injuries she said she had sustained were also shown to magistrates by the Crown.

But in the witness box, Power said he had no intention of driving and that the keys she had taken from him also contained his house keys.

"That isn't how it happened at all. She is a cocaine addict and had been taking cocaine all night which is why her nose was making those noises," he said.

He denied putting his hands on her throat and said she had kicked him in the chest. The complainant did not attend the hearing to give evidence.

When asked if the complainant was 'play acting' by the prosecutor, Power responded: "Completely."

After his acquittal for the assault, Timothy Talbot-Webb referred to the defendant's previous convictions for eight charges of obtaining property by deception from when he was a youth (2005), two battery offences from 2012, failing to comply with community order (2009) and assaulting a police constable, also in 2012, which resulted in a suspended prison sentence.

He also had a conviction for travelling on the railway without a ticket (2018) and for drug driving from December 2020 which led to a 12-month ban.

Power accepted he was therefore driving while disqualified and without insurance when he was stopped in a Citroen Xsara on May 22 last year on the A49 in Dinmore, Herefordshire.

Cocaine metabolite Benzoylecgonine (BZE) was found in his blood at 783ug/L (more than 15 times the limit of 50µg/L). Cocaine was also found in his blood.

A reading of 22ug/L was recorded, more than twice the cocaine limit of 10ug/L. Cocaine and cannabis, consistent with personal use, were also found.

"I've never felt so stupid in my life", Power told the bench.

Magistrates adjourned sentence until July 15 for the preparation of a pre-sentence report by the probation service . An interim driving disqualification was imposed.