A heartbroken wife has opened up about how the man of her dreams turned out to be her worst nightmare and told her it was her “duty” to give him sex.
Kelly Penny, 36, who hails from Bridgend, Wales, spoke of how she was brutally abused by husband Gareth Rainbow, who has now been sentenced to 16 years in prison, Daily Mail reports.
The couple took the holy vows in front of family and friends in March 2013 following a whirlwind six-month romance. However, Rainbow became an “aggressive bully” after the night of their wedding, and would go on to torture her for years to come.
In 2015, he was jailed for 21 months on charges of actual bodily harm with intent at Merthyr Crown Court after he launched a brutal attack on her. Rainbow continued to contact his wife after his release in April 2017 and sent about 4,000 text messages to her.
In July 2018, following repeated attempts to contact Penny, he turned up at her flat and once again attacked her sexually. He was arrested shortly after. In February, Rainbow was convicted of rape and sexual assault after Penny gave evidence against him in court.
According to her, they had known each other for several years before mechanic Rainbow, 36, came to work on her car. “I kept telling myself it must be fate,” she said. “We’d got chatting and sparks flew and he couldn’t seem to get enough of me.”
Just six months after the couple started dating, Rainbow popped the question. “I got a beautiful white gown and we invited 40 guests to our wedding day celebrations and 140 in the night,” Kelly recalled.
However, Rainbow spent the wedding day drinking and Penny noticed that his behavior had completely changed, especially after he told his newlywed wife to “stop f***ing whining.”
“I tried to get push him off to stop but he was too strong for me,” she said, recalling the sex attack. “Then I passed out in shock.” Following the assault, Rainbow allegedly poured himself a glass of vodka. Penny waited for him to leave the room, and then contacted authorities.
“The police were there within minutes,” she said. “They handcuffed Gareth and took him away.” In February this year, Judge Michael Fitton QC handed Rainbow a 16-year extended sentence.
“You are a profoundly self-centered man who has no respect for women and who represents a real danger with any woman with whom you are in a relationship,” he said. Furthermore, Rainbow was given an indefinite restraining order and made to sign the sex offenders’ register for life.
“I am now trying to rebuild my life and it’s not easy,” Kelly said. “I never want to set eyes on that monster again.”
