A WOMAN HAS given a harrowing account of the abuse she suffered at the hands of her ex, former Garda Paul Moody

Moody – who carried out a four-year campaign of harassment, threats, assaults and coercive control of his partner Nicola Hanney – was jailed two years ago and is due to be released later this year.

She joined Patrick Kielty on The Late Late Show last night ahead of the publication of her book ‘Stronger: What Didn’t Kill Me, Made Me’.

Moody was one of the first people in the State to be convicted of coercive control, and Nicola pleaded that anyone in an abusive relationship should understand that they will be believed if they speak out.

“I feel so lucky to be alive. I know that I am one of the lucky ones and I will never take that for granted,” she said.

On the day Nicola’s son was born, the nurse in the hospital overheard how Moody had spoken to her and put him out of the building:

“It was just so cruel. The things he was saying,” Nicola said.

“I definitely felt the pain when he said to me that I just came here to watch you bleed to death. The things he was saying, you definitely wouldn’t say to a woman that was having your baby. It was soul destroying”.

“I know I’m one of the lucky ones, and I’ll never take that for granted.”

If you’ve been affected by any of the issues raised tonight, resources can be found at https://t.co/r70yKUaQmw #latelate pic.twitter.com/2q6cOoMq5C

— The Late Late Show (@RTELateLateShow) October 11, 2024

When Nicola returned home after her son was born she found that her whole apartment had been stripped.

“Every single thing you can imagine, down to the toilet brush, to biscuits I had bought, I had everything organised for all my visitors coming to see me and the baby,” she said.

“It was like an empty apartment when you walked in, with the basics. I think in his mind he thought this is the only way I can get her back, that if I take everything, she’ll have to come and live with me”.

Describing what Paul was like in the initial stages of their relationship, Nicola told Kielty:

“Paul was great. Like, just even from the first message I remember he just had that personality. You know, even in the first messages, he knew how to make a girl laugh. He was very charming.”

Even after their baby was born the abuse continued.

“It only got physical after I had the baby. I didn’t realise the power or control somebody could have over your life just because you had a child from them,” Nicola told Kielty.

Nicola said she didn’t see different issues as red flags at the time in their relationship.

“We were both falling in love. They would have been small things and you would have probably nearly, you would have second guessed yourself, because obviously I was single, living my own life and then you meet a partner and I felt like at times, you’d end up being confused in the little things.

“You’d end up thinking, was that me?”

Now, Nicola no longer fears her tormentor.

“I don’t really feel anything for Paul. To me he’d be a fool if he ever tried to come back into my life. At the end of the day, he can’t hide behind his badge no more. People do know who he is now. I’m not afraid of Paul,” she said.