Two women tortured and strangled disabled man for 24 hours with hair straightener cord

Two women who stripped and tortured a disabled man for 24 hours have been jailed. 

Tanisha Williams and Paige Springer, both 20, dunked the man, who has learning difficulties, in a cold bath, strangled him with a rope and a hair straightener’s electrical cord and threatened him with an electric drill.

Jailing them both for two years and four months at Kingston-upon-Thames Crown Court, a judge called it a ‘sickening case’.

The 27-year-old victim, who lives in supported housing and has a care worker, met Williams on the dating site TangoWire and believed they were in a relationship.

Williams, a student at Greenwich University student, invited him to her flat in Battersea, London, but as soon as he arrived, she closed the door and said: ‘You’re going to die today.’

She then called friend Paige Springer, a mum-of-two, who came round to join in the attack in December 2015.

The assault only stopped when an unexpected visitor arrived and saw the blooded victim, despite the women’s attempts to block his view, and dialled 999.

Prosecutor Mr. Gavin Pottinger told the court: ‘He is particularly vulnerable and this was a sustained assault.

‘He could hear Miss Williams on the phone to friends saying she was going to kill someone and he was hit by her with a pole that caused bleeding and loss of consciousness.

‘Further threats were made and he was dragged from the lounge to the bathroom by Miss Williams, stripped and made to get into the bath and remained there until he felt cold.

‘His head was pushed under the water and an electric drill was also taken into the bathroom and brandished by Miss Williams, who kept turning it on and off, revving it.

‘He was throttled with the electrical cord of some hair straightener’s by Miss Williams.’

The victim responded by desperately thumping the wall in an attempt to raise the alarm.

Springer then threatened then victim with a knife, telling him: ‘If you move you’re going to get stabbed.’

Both women repeatedly punched, kicked and slapped the 27-year-old, and Springer tried to hit him on the head with a hammer saying: ‘I want to kill him, I want to hit him.’

She did not make clear contact, but the blow left a bump and the victim was also struck in the eye with a bottle after Williams said: ‘You’d better hit him with a bottle, knock him out.’