Derry Crown Court heard that a 29-year-old man, Healy, subjected a woman to a horrific series of assaults, including choking, strangling, and biting.

Healy's violence escalated, with him scraping a large kitchen knife along the victim's chest after threatening her with injury. He also subjected her to head banging, neck squeezing, mouth covering, slapping, and biting.

The court was presented with disturbing evidence of Healy's cruelty, including an incident where he urinated on the victim's face before forcing her to perform a sexual act on him. This pattern of abuse occurred on three separate occasions.

Healy further committed three rapes, while simultaneously inflicting "donkey punches" to the victim's head and body. The court heard this type of assault was allegedly intended to heighten sexual feelings during intercourse.

While Healy admitted to the physical assaults during police interviews, he denied any sexual component or other sexual offenses. The victim's psychological trauma was highlighted, revealing she has been undergoing treatment and medication, which is expected to continue indefinitely.

Judge Philip Babington, in passing sentence, deemed the offenses to be aggravated by the humiliating violence exceeding the sexual offenses and the significant impact on the victim.

"This case has contained some of the most terrible and concerning sexual offending this court has seen for a very long time," declared Judge Babington.

Healy was sentenced to a prison term with half to be served in custody and the remaining half on license. He will also be placed on the sex offenders register and subjected to an indefinite sexual offences prevention order.