Wife jailed for abusing husband after police saw horrific nanny cam footage
A wife has been jailed after a judge deemed the abuse of her husband "the worst case of controlling and coercive behaviour" she had ever seen.
Throughout their 20-year relationship, Sheree Spencer, 46, would repeatedly threaten to go to the police claiming her innocent husband, Richard Spencer, 47, was abusing her. She would even scream for help from their home near York to try to back up her story and trick neighbours into thinking it was true. She was only jailed after Richard's friend found some nanny cam footage of the abuse and sent it straight to police.
And the shocking videos, which includes one in which Sheree is holding a knife to her husband's throat, have now been made public. Richard is set to relive what happened to him in a documentary for Channel 5, My Wife, My Abuser: The Secret Footage, which will air on Monday.
Police received a total of 36 videos, nine audio clips and 43 photos of injuries as evidence in the case. Speaking to The Sun, Richard said he feels "detached" when watching the footage. He added: “I felt so trapped for lots of reasons. If it had not been for my friend, I’m not sure what would have happened.”
Police received a total of 36 videos, nine audio clips and 43 photos of injuries as evidence in the case
Sheree was jailed for four years at Hull Crown Court in March 2023 after admitting to controlling and coercive behaviour and three counts of assault (MEN MEDIA)The couple met while on a night out in a club in 2000 and got married nine years later in the Phi Phi Islands in Thailand. They had three daughters and lived in a seven-bedroom home in a leafy village. They decided to buy a nanny cam after Sheree had their eldest daughter in 2015.
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Richard, who worked for BT in network design, started secretly saving video footage of his wife's abuse just after their eldest daughter's birthday in case he needed it as "insurance" as he feared he would be cut off from seeing his children. But the attacks started happening just a few months into the couple's relationship.
He said it began with "pushing, shoving and slapping" and Sheree would just tell him that "all couples have arguments". And over the years the attacks worsened in severity as Sheree would spit on him, lock him out of the house and stab him with forks. Once she hit him with a wine bottle so hard it permanently disfigured one of his ears.
Richard said he would crawl into a foetal position when Sheree was attacking him and use make-up to cover his bruises (Atticus Film & Television)Richard added that his wife, who worked as a senior project manager for HM Prison and Probation Service, would also control him financially. She would make him take out loans in his name as she wanted nice holidays, but Richard said they were living beyond their means.
He got into £45,000 of debt and said Sheree would often not contribute to bills as "punishment". Richard also explained how minor things would often cause Sheree to fly into a rage. He described how the way he would deal with the physical abuse would be to "curl into a foetal position" and put his hands up to cover his face as he knew he needed to take the children to school. He would sometimes use make-up to cover his injuries.
And one way Sheree would exert control would be to threaten to go to the police and claim to be a victim of abuse herself. The truth came out when one night Sheree rang one of Richard's friends claiming he was drunk and she was scared of what he might do. Worried, the friend rushed over but when he was alone with Richard he asked him how he had got a bruise. That's when Richard revealed the truth and showed one of the recordings he had saved to his friend.
Sheree also controlled Richard financially and caused him to get into £45,000 worth of debtOfficers came to the house to arrest Shree in June 2021. PC Adele Jenkinson, speaking in the documentary, said: “As we got to the door, I thought we’d gone to the wrong house. These videos couldn’t have come from a house like this.”
Sheree was jailed for four years at Hull Crown Court in March 2023 after admitting to controlling and coercive behaviour as well as three counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm. Judge Kate Rayfield said the abuse was "the worst case of controlling and coercive behaviour I have seen". Richard wanted to share his story to raise awareness in case other people are going through anything similar.
He said: “The reasons for making the documentary are hopefully to have a positive impact on other people who could be going through something similar.” He is also working with the Mankind Initiative charity which supports men who have been victims of domestic abuse. He has now found new love and said his new partner is the "complete opposition of Sheree in every way possible". He added: "What I thought were feelings of love and being in love before, I now know that wasn’t love.”
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