An “evil” domestic abuser subjected his former girlfriend to abuse so severe that she now has to move out of Wales. Callum Cummins tormented his ex-partner Kayleigh throughout her pregnancy before he attacked and strangled her in front of their nine-month-old son.
Kayleigh, who does not wish to share her last name, has bravely decided to speak out about the horrific treatment she faced to warn other women. The 20-year-old wants her story to encourage people to exercise their right to Clare’s Law, which allows people to check whether their current or ex-partner has a history of violence or abuse.
Speaking to WalesOnline Kayleigh said she first met Cummins in November 2022 when the pair were staying at a homeless hostel. Aged 18 at the time she said she fell deeply in love quickly, and that the feeling appeared mutual to begin with. For the latest Welsh news delivered to your inbox sign up to our newsletter
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“During the first few months he treated me like I was the only person in the world, he literally treated me like a princess,” she said. “But three months into the relationship he first hit me, and he started to verbally abuse me. For example, if I woke him up he would say things like ‘get off me you stupid b*tch’.
“It got to the point where he would name call me every single day for no reason. I was in a homeless hostel as well so I wasn’t thinking straight. I just thought he was the love of my life. I always just wanted to find love and I thought I had found it. That’s why I struggled to leave him. I was absolutely in love with him.”
Kayleigh said she wants to warn other women and encourage people to use Clare’s Law -Credit:Picture provided by Kayleigh
Within those first three months Kayleigh, originally from Caerphilly, said she fell pregnant with Cummins. At first she said Cummins expressed he was excited and that he had always wanted a family of his own. Nevertheless, Kayleigh said his abusive ways continued throughout her pregnancy.
“He continued hitting me while I was pregnant,” she said. “At one point he left me and went up to London while I was heavily pregnant after a little argument and he would go missing for days. Then he promised he would change.
“I was in the hospital when I was pregnant because I was really sick, but he had no care in the world at all for me or the baby. It was really, really intense. He would make me feel really low while I was pregnant.”
Cummins left Kayleigh traumatised -Credit:South Wales Police
His actions saw Kayleigh fear for her life
Kayleigh said in July this year she fell pregnant by Cummins for a second time. Because of the abuse she had endured she made the heartbreaking decision to not continue with the pregnancy.
“He tried to convince me to have the baby,” she said. “Then he promised he would be there for me. But then he left me and didn’t come home for days. He then messaged me out of the blue saying he doesn’t love me and has never loved me and that he never planned to come back.”
Several days later on August 7 Kayleigh said Cummins turned up at her house drunk, before he subjected her to an attack so horrific that she feared for her life. She said: “He started smashing up my living room and then he came into the kitchen and he started punching me in my side in the rib cage really hard.
“He went into the living room and I locked myself into the kitchen and he continued smashing the living room up. I could hear the baby crying so I went upstairs into the baby’s room and he followed me.
“I had never seen him that evil before. He was beating me in front of the baby and he strangled me. I literally physically wet myself because I was that scared in front of the baby. He continued punching me with the baby in my arms and the baby was screaming. When I told him I had wet myself he called me ‘disgusting’ and then walked out of the room.”
Bruises on Kayleigh’s leg -Credit:Kayleigh
The attack lasted around 40 minutes -Credit:Kayleigh
Kayleigh was able to record the entire incident, which lasted around 40 minutes, without Cummins’ knowledge. In the footage, which has been seen by WalesOnline, Cummins can be heard telling Kayleigh to “shut the f*ck up” while she screams out in fear and repeatedly tells him she is scared.
Following the horrific incident Kayleigh said she called a family member who quickly arrived at her home and called the police. Kayleigh said she and her son were quickly moved to a women’s refuge out of the area to protect their safety, before Cummins was arrested around a week later.
Cummins, of Cwrt Ynyslwyd, Aberdare, later pleaded guilty to actual bodily harm, intentional strangulation and criminal damage. The now 24-year-old was sentenced at Cardiff Crown Court on Monday, November 18 to two years in prison and handed a restraining order preventing him from contacting Kayleigh for the next 20 years.
Although the relationship and court case have concluded, Kayleigh said the impact of what happened to her is still on-going. She explained how her life has completely turned upside down because of Cummins’ actions and that she now faces moving out of Wales to start a new life with her son.
Cummins pleaded guilty to a number of serious offences
She said: “I’m still finding it difficult to process how I feel and what has happened to me. Everyday I feel different: guilt, shame, love, hate, anxiety, the list could go on. I’m currently seeing a mental health nurse and have been struggling with depression and anxiety and have had to start back on antidepressants, I’ve also shown symptoms of PTSD. I’ve always struggled [mentally] but this is by far the most traumatic horrifying situation I’ve ever been in.
“The more I’m learning about Callum and his history the more scared I am for myself and my son in the future. I’ve had to completely start from scratch and move address because I don’t feel safe.”
Kayleigh explained how Cummins’ actions have had a profound impact on how she views the world. She said her trust in people has been shattered and she struggles to love herself in the way she should.
A bruise on Kayleigh’s ribs -Credit:Kayleigh
Kayleigh now has to uproot her life -Credit:Provided by Kayleigh
She said: “I don’t think I will ever completely heal from the abuse I’ve been subjected to and I don’t think I could ever live a normal life again, I could never put my trust in a man the way I did Callum ever again.
“Callum used and abused me until there was nothing left of me. I left that relationship as nothing, I had been completely used up and I didn’t feel like I was human or like I was even living. I spent almost everyday crying when I was in the relationship and would sometimes even lock myself in a small cupboard in my house and cry myself to sleep while he was downstairs because he had bullied me so badly that I felt disgusting.”
She said although speaking out is very difficult for her, it gives her some sense of control over what happened. However, she said no words could ever describe exactly what she went through or how she felt during the relationship.
She said: “The most horrible thing is that no one will ever know or understand what has happened to me in that relationship in depth and I feel defeated in a way. I know Callum is a dangerous man [and] I just wish someone could understand without me having to talk about it or think about it. I was so emotionally invested in this relationship I genuinely thought I’d rather be dead than leave him, he felt like a god to me and now all I see is evil deep inside.”