A woman has revealed how her violent ex boyfriend forced her to beg on the streets and beat her if she didn't earn enough.
Kyle Helm, 21, treated Nicole Clarges, 22, like a slave and during one terrifying attack - stabbed her in the knee with a screwdriver.
Nicole, from Peterborough, was only able to raise the alarm when a good samaritan spotted her bruised body on the street and offered her help.
Thankfully, the police were called and Helm was arrested.
In July he was jailed for four years after admitting four charges of ABH and one count of coercive, controlling behaviour.
Now, Nicole is speaking out to raise awareness of domestic violence.
She says: "Kyle was manipulative from the start. He isolated me from my friends and family and eventually made me feel worthless.
"I honestly think he would have killed me one day. Now I want others to know there's help out there."
Nicole met Helm in September 2016 when she was 17.
The pair were staying in the same hostel and within weeks they were dating.
But one day, Helm got drunk and punched Nicole in the face.
She says: "I was shocked and asked him why he hit me.
"He was instantly remorseful and begged for my forgiveness. I had no one else so forgave him."
Then, a few weeks later, Helm accused Nicole of cheating on him. In November, Helm's erratic behaviour got them kicked out of the hostel.
While he got a room in a halfway house, Nicole slept in a tent in a nearby field.
Nicole says: "Kyle gave me a phone that only received incoming calls.
"He'd phone constantly, checking up on me. It was freezing and I was so scared."
After four months, Nicole got housed in another hostel, yet Helm continued to control her.
If a stranger smiled at her, he'd accuse her of cheating and then, in July 2017, Helm was given a council flat.
He ordered Nicole to move in with him and constantly monitored her.
She says: "I wasn't allowed to speak to anyone. He took my bank card, giving me just £10 a month. He spent the rest of my money on booze."
Then in October 2018, after asking a homeless man how much he earned begging, he forced Nicole to sit on the cold pavement in Peterborough town centre and ask strangers for money.
Nicole says: "He told me not to speak to any men and stood over the road watching me for hours.
"Some days I'd make £150, while others £40. And Kyle took it all."
One day, in October 2020, when Nicole only made £20, Helm launched a terrifying attack.
Nicole says: "He grabbed a screwdriver and tried to jab me in the back. Thankfully it didn't pierce my clothes, but then he grabbed my legs and stabbed me in the knee.
"Pain shot through me as the metal pierced my skin."
The next day, Helm's attack continued. He hit Nicole over the head with a vodka bottle, pinned her down and strangled her.
Then he sent her out to beg on the streets again.
Nicole says: "In agony I got dressed, my body was dotted in bruises. "I thought if I didn't make enough that day, he'd kill me."
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After returning to her usual spot to beg, a woman appeared and asked Nicole if she was hungry.
She bought her some food and a drink then offered to take her to buy some new clothes.
Then she invited her back to her house to take a hot shower.
Nicole says: "Afterwards, in her kitchen I broke down. I confessed to the kind stranger what Kyle had been doing to me.
"She reassured me I was safe and drove me to a homeless charity, who found me a place to stay."
The following morning, the police turned up.
Nicole told them all about Helm's abuse and he was arrested later that day.
In July this year, Helm appeared at Cambridge Crown Court and admitted four counts of ABH and one count of coercive controlling behaviour.
He was jailed for four years, with one year on extended licence.
Nicole says: "Now I'm rebuilding my life and reconnecting with my family.
"I'll always be grateful to my good Samaritan. She saved my life that day.
"I just hope I can help someone the way she helped me one day.
"Please, if you're in a violent relationship, tell someone. Even a stranger. They'll help you."
