A property developer is accused of strangling his wife in a drunken argument at their £3 million home on the exclusive Sandbanks peninsula, following her filing for divorce over his alleged affair. Paul Pressland, 63, denies intentional strangulation, claiming self-defense.
Prosecutors told Salisbury Crown Court that on December 1, 2024, Pressland consumed nearly a bottle of red wine before a Sunday roast dinner with his wife, Gemma Martin, 52, and her parents at their Dorset residence. After the in-laws departed, Pressland confronted Ms. Martin about her divorce filing, information he had learned from a friend, the court was told.
According to the prosecution, this led to a heated exchange where Ms. Martin allegedly threw a slipper at her husband, whom she accused of infidelity. Pressland then allegedly pinned his wife against their en suite bathroom door, placing his hands around her throat and squeezing until her eyes "bulged." Ms. Martin reported fearing for her life and that she was also punched during the altercation.
Following the incident, Ms. Martin allegedly told Pressland she would not report the event if he granted her a divorce. However, two days later, she reportedly decided to report the incident to the police online from a tennis club car park. She had her son take photographs of bruises and marks she attributed to Pressland. While her husband was away on business in London, Ms. Martin changed the locks at their home.
The couple had been together for approximately ten years and married for two at the time of the incident. They resided on Sandbanks with two of Ms. Martin's children from a previous relationship.
Ms. Martin testified that she had informed Pressland of her desire for a divorce but had not explicitly stated it was on the grounds of his adultery. She described the day of the incident, including a charity swim and the subsequent roast dinner. She noted that Pressland's mood shifted from light-hearted during dinner to morose and argumentative after her parents left. The argument, she said, continued upstairs, and she threw a slipper after Pressland walked into a spare bedroom. She recounted him returning to the main bedroom, grabbing her arm, and pushing her, leading to a struggle.
Pressland's defense suggested a different sequence of events, alleging that Ms. Martin followed Pressland to the spare bedroom and attacked him, throwing the slipper and subsequently hitting him and pulling his hair. The defense claimed that Pressland's injuries were sustained while he was defending himself.
Ms. Martin denied the defense's account of events. The trial is ongoing.