The former boyfriend of a woman who was left with catastrophic brain injuries when she fell out of a van he had bundled her into has had his prison sentence increased.
Chay Bowskill, of Syston, Leicestershire, bundled Angel Lynn into a van being driven by his friend Rocco Sansome as she tried to walk away from him after an argument in September 2020. She was found lying seriously injured in the carriageway of the A6 near Loughborough, and remains in hospital requiring round-the-clock care.
Bowskill was originally sentenced to seven and a half years in prison for kidnapping, coercive behaviour and perverting the course of justice. His sentence was increased to 12 years by court of appeal judges on Wednesday, after they concluded his original term for the kidnap was not long enough.
Sansome, 20, of Birstall, Leicestershire, had been found guilty of kidnap and sentenced to 21 months in prison; his sentence has not been changed.
Giving a summary of the judges’ decision, Dame Victoria Sharp said: “We have concluded that the sentence passed on him for the kidnap was unduly lenient.” She said the original term “failed to reflect the seriousness of the kidnap” and the harm caused to Lynn as a result.
The judge said Sansome’s sentence “should have been longer” but that, in all the circumstances, including the fact he is close to being released, the court decided not to alter it.
Speaking outside the court after the ruling, Lynn’s aunt Jackie Chamberlain said the family were “relieved” by the sentence increase.
She said: “We’re very grateful to the British public, who have supported us as a family all the way along. We can put this behind us now. We can move on.” She also thanked Women’s Aid for its support.
The pair were sentenced after a trial at Leicester crown court in January.
CCTV footage played to jurors showed Bowskill grabbing Lynn as she walked away from him after an argument and bundling her into a silver Transit van, which was driven off at pace by Sansome.
The defence claimed Lynn jumped or accidentally fell on to the road, and Bowskill was cleared of causing grievous bodily harm.
Lynn’s family referred the sentence to the attorney general, Suella Braverman, under the unduly lenient sentence scheme.
“I don’t think any sentence will be long enough, as far as we’re concerned,” Angel’s mother, Nikki Lynn, said in an interview with the Guardian. “But we want to move on with our lives now and focus on caring for Angel.”
The 21-year-old is unable to walk or talk and is fed through a tube, although her family have hope her condition is improving as she has started squeezing their hands in response to questions.
“Her eyes seemed grey before; it didn’t look like she was there, there was nothing inside,” said Nikki. “She’s got really bright blue eyes, and you can see now that they seem more alive, the colour is more noticeable. She’s definitely in there.”
Her family have raised £129,000 to help fund a lifetime of care for Angel, and they hope to build an extension on their house so she can be moved home soon, although they have been warned the care bill could run into millions.
“I just want her home so I can do things with her and take her out and care for her,” Nikki said. “It must be awful for a 21-year-old to have to be changed and washed by strangers every day.”
She described her daughter as a “girly girl” who enjoyed time with friends and doing her hair and makeup, but was also very active and enjoyed quad biking and jetskiing.
“She was so outgoing before. Being stuck in a bed all day and breathing unaided now, is that the best we have to hope for the rest of our lives?” said Angel’s aunt Jackie Chamberlain, adding the family believed the sentences for Bowskill and Sansome would have been much harsher if Angel had died.
“But she’s got no life at all. She’s had aided breathing for two years. Her life is completely ruined: she’ll never get married, never have children, she’ll never get a job, They’ve ruined her whole life,” she said.
The family said a recent campaign launched by the government to highlight the dangers of coercive control was not enough.
“We feel the sentencing structure should be looked at as a whole because even the maximum sentences are nowhere near enough,” said Chamberlain.
“We’ve become part of a club that we never wanted to become a part of. You look at all the stories on the TV, all the women who have been killed, and you feel so far removed from it. But when something like that happens to you, everything becomes crystal clear. This happens so much and it just keeps getting worse. Where will it end?”
Sharp said Bowskill must serve two-thirds of his sentence behind bars before he can be released.