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The Sun
5 days ago
- The Sun
My mum was abused by her dad, then he did the same to me – I taped his confession but it was too late to save her
AS TARA Proffitt waited in her grandfather's living room, with her phone switched to record, she knew this was her final chance of justice, for her mother and for herself. Alison Connolly, was a victim of sexual abuse as a child by her father, Mark. He had also abused her daughter, Tara. 7 But it was only after Alison was tragically murdered that Tara set out to get justice for her from beyond the grave, by confronting their abuser and taping his confession. Mark Connolly was later jailed for 19 years and died in prison. Mum of two, Tara, 38, says: 'The child abuse was the catalyst for everything which went wrong in Mum's life. She was vulnerable and lacking in confidence. 'She could never stand up to her father, but she did her best for all her children; she loved us all so much and she gave us strength and resilience. 'It was that same strength which helped me confront my grandfather, before Mum's wake. I took his confession to the police, and he was arrested as a result. 'I feel proud that I got justice for Mum but we miss her so much every day.' Mum of eight Alison was brutally attacked by two sisters Charice and Amberstasia Gassmann, then 19 and 23, in May 2015. The pair were slammed for laughing in court before being convicted of murder and manslaughter respectively. Charice was jailed for life and ordered to serve a minimum of 19 years. Amberstasia was sentenced to 12 years in jail. Alison's family, including her daughter Tara, say they have never recovered from their mother's death, and she is speaking out on the 10th anniversary to highlight the devastating impact of violent crime. Cops found me being raped by illegal immigrant at 14 but put me in handcuffs, they let grooming gangs abuse me for years Tara says: 'It took a few seconds for Mum's killers to rip our lives apart, but the pain will live with us always.' Tara, originally from Swindon, was aware her mother had been abused from an early age. Tara says: 'Mum told me her dad sexually abused her throughout her childhood. She couldn't ever confront him; it was just brushed under the carpet. 'She suffered with mental health issues, low self-esteem and depression, as a result. 'Growing up, I felt like I was the one looking after her. She adored us but she was vulnerable.' Tragically, Tara was also sexually abused by her grandfather, including him forcing her to watch pornography and sexually assaulting her. She says: 'I didn't dare report him; I'd been brought up not to confide in people. And I was worried we might be taken away by social services. 'I loved my Mum, and she loved us, despite her problems. 7 7 7 'She was very protective of us too. She didn't want me to suffer as she had, and it broke her heart that her own father was a monster.' Aged 16, Tara left home but remained close to her mother. Tara says: 'My family was targeted by two sisters, Charice and Amberstasia Gassman, who were local bullies. 'They called my younger sister names and spat at her. Mum always stood up for us and she told them to leave her family alone. 'They threatened her with a screwdriver, and Mum told the police. But there had been no physical violence, so there wasn't much they could do. 'We thought they were a nuisance, nothing more.' But in May 2015, the Gassmans covered a moped, belonging to Tara's sister's boyfriend, in brown sauce and threw it against her door. Tara says: 'My sister was terrified, and Mum confronted one of the sisters in the shop and got into a scuffle. 'Mum must have been scared because she wet herself, but she fought back.' On her way home, in broad daylight and outside a block of flats, both sisters ambushed Alison, and she was stabbed to death by Charice. Tara says: 'We were shell-shocked. We couldn't believe she was gone, and so brutally and needlessly. It was devastating.' As the family planned her funeral, Tara decided to confront her grandfather about the abuse. She says: 'Mum's life started to unravel when the abuse began. 'She would not have been vulnerable, she would not have been murdered, had the abuse not happened. It was a chain reaction from that moment. 'I waited for him in his living room until he came home. I didn't feel any fear; I just wanted justice. 'I felt like it was the final thing I could do for Mum. I thought he might deny it, but he admitted it all. I got the feeling he was ready to confess, and I had it all on a recording.' Tara went to the police, and Mark Connolly, known also as Martin, was arrested. In December 2015, Charise and Amberstasia Gassman appeared before Bristol Crown Court. The court heard the sisters were violent and Charise had previously admitted that she felt she could kill someone. The pair were slammed after giggling in court and mocking their victim. Charice was jailed for 19 years for Alison's murder, and Amberstasia was jailed for 12 years for manslaughter. Tara says: 'The sentences brought us no comfort. As a family, we were shattered.' In January 2017, Martin Connolly, 77, aka Mark Connolly, appeared before Swindon Crown Court and admitted sexually abusing and raping five children over a forty-year period. He was jailed for 19 years and died in prison in 2022. Tara says: 'I was glad he went to jail because it meant that other children were safe from him. He ruined my mums' life, and he tried to ruin mine, but I didn't let him. 'I felt mum was with me, giving me strength throughout the case. I hope she'd be proud that he faced justice at last. "The chain of abuse is broken at last, and future generations can live in peace.' Ten years on, Tara is speaking out about the impact of violent crime. She says: 'We miss her more and more every day. "We've had her ashes for ten years as we haven't been able to let go, we've been holding onto the memories. 'I forgive her killers, because I don't want to carry that anger with me. But I want them to know that our hearts are broken.' 7
The Sun
14-05-2025
- The Sun
I watched my mum's evil murderers laugh in court after she was stabbed to death – now one of them walks free
ALISON Connolly died from a single stab wound to the right side of her chest inflicted by a steak knife on May 12, 2015, in Swindon, Wilts. Sisters Charice and Amberstasia Gassmann, then 19 and 23 respectively and also from Swindon, both denied murder. 6 6 6 But Charice was jailed for life and told she must serve a minimum of 19 years, while Amberstasia was found not guilty of murder but convicted of manslaughter. Amberstasia was sentenced to 12 years in prison and after serving half of her sentence, she was released on licence in 2021. Ten years on from the murder, Alison's daughter Tara Proffitt says her family have been left with the pain of knowing there has not been justice for her mum's death. Tara said: "We've never coped, it may be 10 years, but it still feels like last week to us all. "How do you ever overcome something like your mum being taken in that cruel way? "We were like best friends more than mum and daughter. "It's had a massive impact on our lives. I was always a bubbly and very strong person. "You never think something like that will happen in your family and when it does you're cautious of who you have around you and you don't trust anyone. "There's no justice for what happened to my mum and it's had a knock-on effect. "My children have had to grow up without their nan and the memories of seeing her bubbly, kind nature and it's been stolen from them. That's the most hurtful thing for me. Erik and Lyle Menendez have sentences REDUCED & are eligible for parole "I'm angry at the justice system, and angry we're allowing people to take lives and not persecuting them appropriately. "The way she was murdered and the way it was set up, they knew what they were out to do, and it was pre-meditated. "The sentence should have been longer. "They were laughing in the court, and my mum had been taken, who I massively adored, and I had to watch them laughing and mocking my dead mum. "The judge was watching and he could see how conniving and evil they were, if they didn't act like that, they would have got even less, 10 years is nothing to them. "For the rest of our lives now we have to live with this and they can walk out of prison and have children and a family and get on with their lives. "They're not scared of that and they should be scared to commit crime. "There's no example being set to perpetrators because they will only serve a few years in prison, there's no justice in the first place and a sentence between three and nine or ten years is a slap on the wrist. 6 6 6 "It's a mockery of people's lives. "We're the ones serving the sentence, we've been serving the life sentence through pain and loss and sorrow because mum's no longer here. "My whole life has been tipped upside down. "Regardless of [Charice] coming out or staying in prison, it won't bring mum back. "How can you ever grieve and what kind of justice are we showing to a perpetrator who wants to commit these disgusting crimes? It's vile. "It's happening every second of the day, not just our family, but families are being left with a lifetime of pain and no justice. "Mum was one of a kind and she wouldn't send them any hatred. "I send them healing and I've let go of that anger I have for them, otherwise they are still winning. Grieving "They say time is a healer but it's not, it gets worse, but you learn to cope with the pain and it's a loss and pain you can't explain. "I hope they heal from taking a beautiful one of a kind soul. "Mum is part of me and I'm part of her and we have that connection nobody can take, she had such a courageous, bold personality and that's what I miss about her and the funny memories I have with her can never be stolen." Tara added: "We've had her ashes for ten years as we haven't been able to let go and we've been holding onto the memories of mum. "Dad passed recently and we spread their ashes in the sea together in Wales and they are back together now." The family have also been left fighting appeals over the years as Charice and Amberstasia tried to challenge their conviction. Charice Gassmann's defence team tried to argue she was suffering a serious mental health condition, but her appeal was rejected in 2017. What is manslaughter? MANSLAUGHTER is a legal term used to describe the unlawful killing of a human being without malice aforethought. It is generally considered a less severe offence than murder. In British law, manslaughter can be classified into two main categories: Voluntary Manslaughter: This occurs when the defendant had the intention to kill or cause serious harm but did so in circumstances that partially excuse the act, such as in the heat of passion or under diminished responsibility. Involuntary Manslaughter: This occurs when the defendant did not have the intention to kill or cause serious harm but caused death through reckless or negligent behaviour. This can include situations where the defendant's actions were unlawful or dangerous, even if they did not foresee the fatal outcome. The specific definitions and classifications can vary, but the key element that distinguishes manslaughter from murder is the lack of premeditation or intent to cause death.
