Woman may never see properly again after jealous boyfriend fractured eye socket

A woman left with double vision and PTSD after a brutal attack from her ex-boyfriend has urged victims to leave their abusive partners before it’s too late.

Adele Semple had her left eye socket fractured by Matthew Hayes, 31, who hit her so hard she flew across the bedroom before pinning her down and punching her repeatedly in the head.

She thinks the 29 month sentence he got was too light based on the severity of her injuries.

Adele, 31, was feeling vulnerable and down on her luck when she met Hayes through dating website Plenty of Fish.

She had just gone through a messy break up and had lost her job picking and packing for JD Sports, forcing her to move out of her rented home into a hostel.

So a trip to Hayes’ home in Bolton, Greater Manchester felt like a well deserved break and she instantly clicked with her new admirer.

She said: ‘I immediately felt comfortable with Matt. He listened to what I had to say and made me feel special.

‘I’ve not had the best time with men in the past, so just having someone who seemed genuinely interested and seemed to care was such a nice change.’

Because of her insecure living situation she jumped at the chance of moving in with Hayes and his mum just a month into their relationship.

She said: ‘Looking back, it was clearly too quick to move in with someone, but I’d just lost my job and I could only live in the hostel for so long.

‘At the time, it felt like he was my hero, my knight in shining armour.’

But within a matter of weeks, Hayes’ behaviour started to change and at a New Year’s Eve party in 2017 he showed his true colours.

Sara from Oldham, Greater Manchester said her boyfriend scowled and demanded they go home after he spotted her talking to a man.

‘He’d got it in to his head that I was flirting with the bloke and wouldn’t let it lie,’ she added.

Looking back at Hayes’ jealously, Adele says she can’t believe she didn’t do anything about it at the time.

She added: ‘For weeks everything would be fine and then out of nowhere he’d fly off the handle, then suddenly he’d love me and say he couldn’t live without me again.’

‘It’s clear now he was just trying to mess with my head – and it worked.’

On January 12 this year Hayes’ controlling behaviour reached a climax when Adele returned from doing the weekly shop.

Instead of helping her unpack Hayes immediately accused her of having an affair and threatened to assault her with a perfume bottle if she didn’t leave the house.

At her wits’ end, Adele said: ‘Go on then – just do it,’ before her jealous ex chased her up the stairs and hit her so hard she went flying across the bed onto the floor.

In a boiling rage, he pinned her to the floor before punching her across the face and whalloping her left eye.

Recalling the terrifying onslaught, Adele said: ‘I never thought he’d actually attack me the way he did.

‘We were at loggerheads, then all of a sudden something just switched in him and I knew it was going to be bad.

‘The last thing I remember is him being on top of me and then a loud cracking sound.’

Hayes’ friend was in the house at the time and called emergency services, who arrested the thug while Adele was rushed to hospital.

She was treated for a fractured eye socket, as well as bruising to her forehead, arms, legs and thighs.

Three months later on April 26, Hayes pleaded guilty to common assault and was jailed for 29 months and handed a five year restraining order.

Adele feels her injuries mean she is serving a far harsher sentence than the monster who attacked her.

She said: ‘I couldn’t believe it when he got slapped with just 29 months in prison.

‘I might never be able to see properly again out of my left eye, while he’ll no doubt be out of prison in a year and a half.’

Now Adele, who still suffers from headaches and double vision, is hoping to raise awareness and help other women act before it’s too late.

She said: ‘My life is in tatters and it’s taken all I have to carry on and keep going.

‘I’ve got PTSD and depression after what Matt put me through and sometimes it feels like I won’t be able to make it to the next day.

‘To any women out there who notice their partners acting controlling, don’t wait until it’s too late to get out.

‘Your partner should never treat you less than you are, if they do run for the hills – don’t make the same mistake I did.’