My boyfriend was too good to be true, then he held me hostage, tortured me and told me where he was going to bury me

When Alana Rossiter first met her now ex-boyfriend Andrew Beckett in early 2021 she said he seemed too good to be true. He offered her the world, spoiled her with gifts and took her on exciting trips away.

However it didn't take long for Beckett to show his true colours, proving Alana's initial gut feeling right. The 35-year-old from Aberdare became paranoid, jealous and controlling.

Although Alana tried her best to leave serial abuser Beckett, she said he would always find a way of manipulating her back to him. If she blocked him, he would send her threats via his mobile banking app. He would also leave work to go and look for her. He made her feel like she would be nothing without him.

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But no matter how awful Beckett was towards Alana, she said she never expected the violent outburst that was to come on May 14 2023. It saw evil Beckett hold Alana hostage for more than three hours, while he strangled her, beat her and forced her to be sick. He even lifted her up by her neck and threatened to kill her. During the incident she said she absolutely believed she was going to die.

Alana has bravely decided to speak out about her ordeal. She hopes it will help survivors and victims of domestic abuse feel less alone, and to empower them to reach out for help. For the latest Rhondda news, sign up to our newsletter here

Describing how the relationship began 25-year-old Alana from Llanharan said: "I knew him for years prior to the relationship because he lives in my local village, but our relationship started because we matched on Tinder. At the start of the relationship, he was very giving. You would never ever think he was capable of something like this. He would give you everything; he was too good to be true. The first date we went on, we went away to Swansea. He acted like he had loads of money when he didn’t."

As time went on, Alana said things started to change. She said Beckett would regularly assume she was cheating on him, when she was just out socialising with her friends.

"If I blocked him to try and end the relationship, he would do things like send 0.01p into my bank account with a threat as the reference. That was one of the first signs," she said. "It progressed so that he would do things like leave his work to find out where I was. If I had gone out for a few drinks at my local, he would literally leave work and come and find me and throw stones at my window. If I went out, he would straight away think I was cheating on him even though it was just normal socialising with my friends."

But it wasn't until May 14, 2023 that Beckett became violent towards Alana, subjecting her to a horrific attack following what was supposed to be an enjoyable night out. Alana explained how the pair had gone to a Stereophonics tribute night in Pencoed. On the train there, she said she sensed something was off.

"I don’t think he had slept the night before so he was in a state before we got there," she said. "I felt wary going and said I wanted to turn back because I could sense the type of mood he was in. I was crying in the [venue] and one of my friends asked if we were okay. He said something like: 'It’s just her and the people she is hanging out with', and I said: 'That is really not the case - it's the way he's speaking to me'."

Alana said a friend drove the pair home and appeared visibly uncomfortable because the couple were arguing. As soon as the pair walked into Alana's house, she said Beckett attacked her and strangled her.

She said: "The friend was a bit wary dropping us off because we were arguing. Then he started on me as soon as we got through the door. He strangled me three times and held me hostage over the side of my sofa - I lost consciousness. He stuck his fingers down my throat and I projectile vomited, bringing up blood. It was horrific."

Alana described how Beckett pushed her onto her sofa and pinned her down so she couldn't move for around three hours. She said on several occasions he forced her to stand up so he could throw punches at her. If she called for help, he threatened to kill her, she said.

"I literally couldn’t move, I had to do what he said. My neck was on the corner of my sofa with my head hanging off his edge and he had his hands around my throat and sat on top of me holding me hostage," she said. "He made me stand up a couple of times and told me if I don’t stand up he was going to kill me and bury me up the mountain. He threw punches towards me.

"As I was right by the curtains of my house, I tried to wiggle my curtains and shout 'help', but if I did that, he would get even worse and throw both his hands over my face and say: 'You dare bring attention to this house’."

During the attack, Alana said Beckett injured her hand when he aimed for her face while she stood up and missed. The strangulation left her with a haemorrhage to her eye, while she also sustained bruises across her body. When the three hours was up, Alana said Beckett forced her upstairs to bed before he passed out asleep.

She feared she might die if she moved, but also felt that her only chance of survival was getting away and calling for help. She said: "I had climbed under my blanket and thought: 'If I move and he wakes up, I’m going to die'. Luckily he didn’t and I managed to get downstairs. He had hidden my phone, but luckily his phone was on my living room floor and managed to dial 999. Police came and arrested him while I had to wait outside the property." Next an officer took Alana to hospital as she was suffering from a bloody eye and a swollen neck. She was also struggling to breathe.

Alana said if she had known Beckett was capable of violence, she never would have been with him. She said although she previously tried to leave him because of his behaviour towards her, his manipulation made it difficult to walk away for good.

She said: "I was told [after the incident] that this is what he is known to do. It’s such a shame I found out this way because if I had known this, I wouldn't even have risked being with him. The police told me I am lucky to be alive and I genuinely believe the next person will be dead. Every time he has done it, his actions have just gotten worse. It’s frightening how he hasn’t learnt his lesson."

Following the attack, Beckett initially denied his charges - despite there being strong evidence. It saw Alana having to prepare to face Beckett on trial. However, she said he changed his plea to guilty ahead of the hearing, meaning the trial did not go ahead.

"This is what caused me to have PTSD." Alana said. "If he had just pleaded guilty, it would have still been hard, but easier. I was worried about being cross examined and I wasn't sleeping properly. I just couldn’t let it go and kept replaying what happened over and over in my head because I had a trial coming up.

"On the day of the trial I was a mess. He pleaded not guilty despite having three opportunities to give a guilty plea. He put me through having to prepare for a trial and then on the morning of the trial he changed his plea to guilty. It was around 15 minutes before the trial was set to begin. The thought of facing a trial was traumatic on its own."

Alana said ever since her ordeal, she has been struggling with sleep, having uncontrollable shakes and flashbacks to what happened. She said she is unable to enjoy new relationships and no longer feels like she could trust a romantic partner. She said: "It has affected relationships for me going forward. If I meet someone I’m so aware that you never really know someone or what they are capable of."

Beckett, of Nith Street, was sentenced at Newport Crown Court on Wednesday, February 7. He pleaded guilty to intentional strangulation and assault occasioning actual bodily harm. The court heard he had nine previous convictions including numerous assaults against previous partners, and one one occasion grabbed a woman by the throat.

In mitigation, Ieuan Bennett said his client now accepts the relationship is at an end, and acknowledges he has a problem when it comes to relationships. At the time of the assault, the barrister said Beckett was intoxicated from alcohol and drugs.

Sentencing, Recorder David Elias KC said: "You subjected (Alana) to an absolutely horrific ordeal, from a man she should have been able to trust completely...She suffered nightmares as a result of what you did to her and extreme anxiety."

Beckett was sentenced to 27 months imprisonment and was made subject to a restraining order. He will serve half the sentence in custody before he is released to serve the remainder on licence. While on remand in custody he has already served the equivalent of an 18 months prison sentence.

Although Alana is relieved that the sentencing has concluded, she said it did not bring her as muhc closure as she hoped. The sentencing was adjourned four times following its original date in November - something that Alana said caused her "a lot of unnecessary stress."

The fact that Beckett has already spent a large chunk of his sentence while on remand is also upsetting for her. "It means he hasn't even got much of a sentence left," she said.

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: “Our courts are running at full throttle and we are boosting investment, recruiting hundreds of judges across all our courts and tribunals, maximising the use of remote hearings and extending Nightingale courts – this means more victims are getting the justice they deserve and more offenders are having to pay for their crimes.”

• If you, a family member a friend, or someone you are concerned about has experienced domestic abuse or sexual violence, you can contact the Live Fear Free Helpline 24 hours a day 7 days a week, for free advice and support or to talk through your options: 0808 801 08 00.