Swindon man jailed for 21 years over attack on girlfriend

A man who "sawed" at his girlfriend's throat with a knife when she tried to leave him has been jailed for 21 years.

Sezwin Crasto, 23, was convicted of attempted murder over the attack on the woman at his home in Swindon on 21 March 2022.

Her injuries were so severe that it took a four-hour operation to save her life.

Sentencing Crasto at Bristol Crown Court on 27 July, the judge said he had gone into an "ungovernable rage".

Crasto had admitted a lesser charge of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

But he was found guilty of attempted murder at trial on a majority verdict of 11 to one.

The woman has been left with permanent scarring to her face, including a deep diagonal wound, and changes to her voice.

One of the medical team that treated her said Crasto must have used a "sawing" motion to inflict so serious an injury.

During the four-day trial, the court heard Crasto and the victim met at college in 2019 and entered a relationship in 2021.

He became increasingly jealous and controlling particularly after she left home to take up a place at university.

Crasto would often turn up at her student accommodation unannounced after a disagreement, and monitor her social media activity.

He had twice assaulted her - once by slapping and once by biting - following rows about adding male friends on social media.

On the day of the attack, she attempted to break up with him in person because he was refusing to accept the relationship was over from calls and texts.

He accused her friends of ruining their relationship and when she stood up to try to leave he knocked her to the floor and attacked her with a knife.

She described holding her hands in a "begging" position to Crasto because she was unable to speak.

It was the defendant's father who tried to pull him off the victim and made him call the emergency services.

Jailing him for 21 years, Judge William Hart said: "You went into an ungovernable rage, nothing you then did to her had any logical sequence to it.

"It is almost certain you first inflicted those savage wounds to her face - they were done deliberately to disfigure her or to make her undesirable, or simply to punish her."

He continued: "And then you used the weapon to inflict that dreadful wound to her throat. It was done with an intent to kill, as is explicitly found by the jury's verdict."

Crasto was told he must serve at least two thirds of his sentence in custody.

David Maunder, for Crasto, told the court his client had a history of depression, and that the relationship had caused controversy among their Goan community.

"He was under significant pressure to find himself work, find himself permanent accommodation here and in Goa - the expected basis of a long-term relationship," he said.

He said the "divergence of life opportunities" between himself and the victim had been causing Crasto "tension and conflict".

Det Con Victoria Barker, of Wiltshire Police, praised the woman for her resilience.

"Aside from the physical injuries, there has also been an understandable and significant mental impact on her," she said.

"She has shown incredible bravery in assisting us in our investigation, and I want to pay tribute to her."

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