A SINGLE mum thought she’d met the perfect new man – but he had a chilling secret.
Sophie Mitchell matched with “Gary Lever” on dating app Bumble and they went to a local pub for their first date – little did she know, however, he’d just been released from prison.
The 37-year-old brute – hiding his real name Gary Davies – had knifed his former girlfriend in the neck, and had a history of domestic abuse dating back over a decade.
Within weeks of meeting, Davies would be bombarding Sophie with abusive messages, angrily demanding entry into her home and even joined her gym so he could keep an eye on her.
His harassment would get so bad in August he’d become one of the first people in the UK to receive an indefinite Domestic Abuse Protection Order (DAPO), as part of a Home Office pilot scheme launched last year.
Sophie is now campaigning for a law change to protect people on dating apps from those with severe convictions, including domestic abuse – with verification including a criminal background check.
Mum-of-one Sophie, 36, told The Sun: “We met on Bumble and chatted for a couple of weeks – everything seemed fine.
“He was very charming and I weirdly described him at the time as respectful and genuine, which is scary to think about now.”
They met in person for the first time in July, and went for a walk near where Sophie lives in Ramsbottom, Greater Manchester, before going to a pub.
“I was just enjoying the date, I wasn’t really thinking anything beyond that,” she explained.
The pair continued to see each other over the summer and everything seemed great.
Sophie said: “He didn’t pressure me or push for anything more.”
However, Davies did join the same gym as Sophie, despite living some distance away in Bolton, but she was able to see past that.
“It was a bit, okay, I go to the gym six days a week, I’m really into it – that’s my space, but I thought fine,” she explained.
They even went for a hike with Davies’ parents, his sister and her children.
“Everything seemed pretty genuine,” said Sophie.
She later realised he had given her a fake name and age in a bid to prevent her finding out about his past.
But one night they were at her home doing a relationship quiz on Instagram and suddenly his true colours began to show.
Sophie said one question asked about how they interpret past experiences.
“I can logically see experiences in my past as special, despite not wanting to go back to them necessarily,” she said.
“But he got really upset and angry – he said if something is special now you can’t say something in your past is still special, you can only have one special thing.”
Sophie explained Davies got into a “strop”, adding: “He was just talking at me and he confused my brain.
“I started crying and he got really angry, and said I was only pretending to be upset to manipulate him, that I was trying to be the victim.”
She said Davies eventually agreed to leave but then came back and was “back in my face shouting”.
Sophie told Davies she needed some space but he continued to “turn up” at the gym, having memorised her schedule.
“I told him I don’t see you the same way because of the way you treated me on that night, it was not how you’ve presented yourself,” she explained.
However, Davies was apologetic and despite them meeting up for one more date, Sophie then told him as he dropped her off at home she wanted to end things.
She said he immediately began “blowing up my phone” and even turned up later that night at her flat.
“He was saying you need to let me in or you’ll regret it – I said absolutely not.”
He eventually left, but Sophie was getting scared and so contacted a friend who came round to pick her and take her back to theirs.
What is Clare’s Law?
Also known as Domestic Violence Closure Scheme, Clare’s Law is intended to provide information that could protect someone from being a victim of attack.
The scheme allows the police to disclose information on request about a partner’s previous history of domestic violence or violent acts.
It was brought in across England and Wales in 2014.
The scheme was introduced after 36-year-old Clare Woods was murdered by her boyfriend in 2009.
Mum-of-one Ms Wood was strangled and set on fire at her home in Salford, Greater Manchester, in February 2009 by George Appleton, who had a record of violence against women.
Her father, Michael Brown, campaigned for the introduction of Clare’s Law, arguing her death would have been prevented had she known her partner’s history.
The introduction followed pilot schemes in four areas – Greater Manchester, Gwent, Nottinghamshire and Wiltshire – since September 2012.
How does it work?
If you have concerns about your partner’s background, you can apply for disclosure by going to the police.
You can visit your local station in person, call 101 or speak to an officer on the street.
Once you’ve made contact, the police may invite you in for a chat to put in the application.
If they do not make a disclosure, that means either the police don’t have any information on your partner, or they don’t feel there is any risk to you at that time.
If there is a disclosure, they should make a referral to a specialist service to get support for you or the parties involved and help create a safety plan.
The legislation also allows members of the public to make enquiries into the partner of a close friend or family member.
She said a neighbour told her he’d later turned up again and was shouting outside the building and banging on the door.
Sophie had contacted the police online and her friend’s male partner then dropped her back off at home the next day.
She said Davies messaged her asking “why’ve you been with a guy all night?”
“That was scary because obviously he’d been waiting for me at the flat or following me,” she said.
Sophie said Davies later sent her messages saying he wouldn’t cancel his gym membership and would continue to turn up there.
“He was getting really aggressive and saying I’d had no respect for him so he had no respect for me, and continued to blow up my phone,” she said.
Sophie posted a photo of Davies in a local version of Facebook groups called Are We Dating the Same Guy? which allows people to run rudimentary background checks on new people they’re dating via those in their area.
Someone then commented with an article detailing how Davies had been jailed in 2014 after he “sawed” his then girlfriend’s neck with a kitchen knife to teach her a lesson, a court heard.
Preston Crown Court had been told Davies had dealt his victim five blows with a serrated kitchen knife because he “wanted to leave a scar”, reports The Bolton News.
He was described as a “demanding boyfriend” and had originally picked up some scissors to scare his ex after becoming “angry and upset”.
Inside chilling rise of dating app killers who lure matches to their deaths… & why it’s ‘impossible’ to stop them
By Emily Davies
MURDERERS and dangerous criminals are using popular dating apps, chillingly matching with unsuspecting users who are just looking for love.
Many sinister killers lure in innocent victims through dating apps like Grindr, Tinder, Bumble and Hinge – and experts have told The Sun it is still almost impossible to stop them in the UK.
Brit Grace Millane is among those to have been killed on a date by a man met through such an app.
Graduate Grace, from Essex, was murdered by Jesse Kempson on the eve of her 22nd birthday while backpacking in New Zealand in 2018.
Another woman told The BBC she went on a date with Kempson days after he’d murdered Grace, during which he told a chilling anecdote about a pal who accidentally killed his girlfriend during consensual sex.
“What we know now is this could have been him testing out his story on me,” she said, with Kempson attempting to use a similar defence when Grace’s murder came to light.
The woman walked away early from the date and fears she otherwise would have been a victim.
“I think the invention of dating apps is a wonderful thing and I wouldn’t want to live in a world without that, but I just wish for a world where women don’t have to think about their safety all the time,” she said.
Another woman would go on to claim to have met Kempson, also on Tinder, in 2016, saying he eventually turned “very violent” and threatened to kill her with a knife.
However, despite reporting him to cops, they failed to take action – which could have prevented Grace’s death two years later.
In the US, Tinder has an optional service where people can pay for a criminal background check for their peace of mind before meeting a stranger on a date.
But in the UK, there are no such safeguards, and there are calls for apps and the police to work closer together to crack down and help user safety.
David Jones, director of Reveal Private Investigations, told The Sun this week: “Predators will always take advantage of the minimal sign-up requirements on dating apps.
“When all that’s needed is an email address or a phone number you have the perfect environment for disposable accounts.
“A predator can set up multiple profiles within minutes, vanish the moment suspicion arises, and reappear under a new alias.
“That cycle makes it almost impossible for victims or even the platforms themselves to track repeat offenders.”
Davies had told the three-day trial: “I wanted to scare her but I didn’t think scissors were intimidating enough, then I saw the knife in the draw.
“I wanted to give her something to remember not to mess with me. I was losing face as I saw it with her and her friends.”
He added: “I wanted to leave a scar… I wanted to give her something to remember every time she looks in the mirror. I was just stabbing everywhere.”
Despite sawing into his victim’s neck while sat on top of her, luckily he didn’t severe any blood vessels, however, a jury found him not guilty of attempted murder.
But he was later sentenced to eight years imprisonment after pleading guilty to Section 18 wounding with intent and false imprisonment.
Sophie also did a Clare’s Law request – which allows the police to release information about any previous history of violence or abuse a person might have to someone starting a new relationship.
She said she was horrified to find Davies had several domestic abuse-related convictions dating back years.
“He’s not a good guy,” she said.
Davies then, bizarrely, attempted to flee the country, meaning he was in breach of licencing conditions, having only recently been released from prison.
Greater Manchester Police confirmed he had been detained on August 13 this year at Dover Docks in Kent as he tried to cross the Channel.
He was recalled to prison until July 2026, though The Sun understands he has already been released.
Davies was also handed an indefinite DAPO to protect Sophie.
The force said: “The indefinite order was additionally secured after the court heard Davies had a history of domestic offending against women dating back to 2013 which, we argued, emphasised the need for such a robust and durable order of protection.
“In this case, Davies started exhibiting abusive behaviour just weeks into meeting.
“The victim came forward two weeks ago by initially reporting to us online that she was concerned about the way he was acting after their first argument, and that the relationship had moved extremely quickly.”
It went on to say: “When speaking to officers, the victim provided evidence of Davies persistent harassment over text message and repeated unwanted phone calls, and concerns that he had been following and watching her, compelling her to install new locks and a Ring doorbell on her property.
“He had joined the same gym as her, which was a distance from his own home, aligning his visits to her previous routine, as well as lied about his name and date of birth, most likely to avoid her discovering his true self.”
‘It feels like it’s common sense’
Sophie said: “It wouldn’t surprise me if he wasn’t seeing someone else already.”
She is now campaigning for dating apps to be responsible by law for providing full background verifications to flag up any criminal convictions.
“What I’m asking for is not much of a stretch – it’s not a massive thing to implement. It feels like common sense,” she explained.
“It’s done in other areas to prevent harm, for example, convicted paedophiles can’t live in certain areas or get certain jobs… that’s all done to reduce the risk of them re-offending and being in contact with any vulnerable children.
“I feel if someone’s got serious convictions for crimes against a romantic partner it seems like nothing really is in place to reduce the risk.
“It needs to come from the government.
“At the moment, with online dating, there is the option for being verified but that’s just an option, it’s not compulsory.
“What I’m looking for is everyone who signs up has their ID checked, then anything serious will pop up. Technology-wise that can’t be that difficult going forward.”
Sophie referred to the age verification brought in by the government earlier this year to prevent children accessing adult content online.
She said while Clare’s Law is a great innovation, the emphasis is on the potential victim to “do the legwork” and “it might be too late by then”.
The Sun has contacted Bumble for comment.
To see more on Sophie’s petition for criminal history verification on dating apps click here.
