Jamie Campbell, Mark Aspinall and Tommy Lowther received the Police Public Bravery award last week after breaking into the home of a dale woman who believed she would die at the hands of her partner.
The brutal assault happened in a Teesdale village late one January evening last year.
The attacker repeatedly banged the victim’s head against a wall, stamped on her chest and broke her ribs before strangling her so hard so thought she was about to pass out.
He only loosened his grip when he heard the shouts of the three men who had entered the house after becoming concerned about the state of the property.
Mr Lowther, who runs ex-service personnel charity Sporting Force, was at the pub when his wife called to tell him something was amiss.
He said: “She said she could hear someone shouting for help. I went down to a house with Jamie and Mark – I ended up kicking the front door in and we went through.
“As soon as I went in it was apparent there was something very wrong.”
The ex-Metropolitan police officer and forces veteran walked in on a scene of utter devastation.
“The back windows had been put out, there was blood all over the walls,” said Mr Lowther
“That was when my police training kicked in – even though I’ve been out of it for a while it flooded back to me.
“We shouted if anyone was in and there was a male at the top of the stairs – he asked us what we were doing in his house.
“Then it kicked off a bit.”
It was then that the victim appeared from around a corner.
“I have seen some gory stuff in the police and the army but her face was a total mess,” said Mr Lowther.
“Her faced was covered in blood – her hair was matted from it and there was blood running through it – I can still see it now.
“I made the conscious decision we were not leaving the house without her.”
The trio managed to contain the attacker upstairs before the victim saw a window of opportunity to escape.
“She bolted and held onto the back of my jacket,” said Mr Lowther.
“I told the other two to keep him in the house while I took her to my house where my wife, Joanne, was,” said Mr Lowther.
“She looked after her and phoned the police.”
Meanwhile, the attacker had run back upstairs and barricaded himself in the bathroom where it was believed he had knives.
Mr Lowther added: “If you trap a rat in a corner they can get scared and can do anything.
“Even though he had done what he had, we didn’t want him to take his own life and we were trying to calm him down.”
The police arrived and the three men handed over the attacker but Mr Lowther found the ambulance was taking its time arriving.
He said: “It was taking ages and was getting ridiculous so I bundled her in my car and took her to hospital myself.
“It happened at about midnight and we sat with her until 7am while she had tests.”
The victim had suffered broken ribs, cuts to her head and face and was covered in bruises.
Mr Campbell and his partner helped Mr Lowther and his wife fetch pyjamas and clothes for the victim.
When he arrived back in the village, Mr Lowther returned to the house.
He added: “There were bloody handprints all over the walls and upstairs there was a big puddle of congealed blood.
“Over the next few days I took control of her house for her and tidied up a bit helping get some of the windows replaced.”
The attacker was later charged with assault occasioning actually body harm and two separate common assaults.
He pleaded guilty to all at court and was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison.
He was also given an indefinite restraining order.
The three men were presented with their bravery awards at Durham Constabulary Headquarters by Chief Constable Mike Barton.
“This is one of the proudest days of my life,” said Mr Aspinall.
“We just did what I hope anybody else would do.
“Our instincts just kicked in – we couldn’t walk away and leave her.”
Detective Constable David Nicholson nominated the three men for the award.
He said: “The victim is adamant that if these men hadn’t stepped in, she would have died that night.”
Chief Constable Mike Barton said: “I think it is just fantastic what these men have done. They should be extremely proud.
“They have shown real compassion and bravery in putting themselves in a potentially dangerous situation to save this woman’s life.
“They have stepped in when sadly other people may not have.”
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