THE adopted son of the founder of Helen House hospice imprisoned a former nun in his car before punching her in the face.

Kojo Ritchie, who was adopted as a baby in Ghana by Sister Frances Dominica, was jailed for two-a-half-years at Oxford Crown Court yesterday.

The 25-year-old has 38 previous convictions for offences including headbutting his ex-partner, stabbing someone in the leg and causing grievous bodily harm to his adoptive mother, who set up Helen and Douglas House hospices in East Oxford.

Yesterday the court heard Ritchie forced his ‘auntie’, former nun and family friend Caryn Hughes, into his car and drove her around the Oxford bypass against her will before punching her in the face, making her nose bleed heavily.

Judge Tom Corrie told him: “You were adopted when you were about one by your adoptive mother who has stood by you ever since.

“Both she and you maintain the neglect by your teenage mother is some sort of explanation or excuse for your current appalling behaviour, for which she – and it’s all to credit to her – has continued to forgive you.

“It seems to the court that the explanation, or excuse, whatever it’s called, as to the neglect of you by your mother is wearing a bit thin.”

After the sentencing, Sister Frances declined to answer whether she had forgiven Ritchie, who admitted false imprisonment, causing actual bodily harm and damaging property.

She said: “I want him to get appropriate help.”

Prosecutor Matthew Walsh said there had been “previous incidents of violence” from Ritchie, of St Mary’s Road, East Oxford, towards Miss Hughes and that he once showed her what she thought was a gun.

During the incident on June 5 Ritchie became aggressive towards Miss Hughes and smashed the glass panel of a door at her house before taking a bag, containing knives, from his garage.

Mr Walsh said: “He began to make demands of her and force her around, effectively in his control.

“He told her to get in the car, shouting at her. She was very scared.

“He drove off at speed, she kept saying she wanted to get out and he was refusing to let her, while all the time making phonecalls to his ex-partner and the police about a matter he thought police were pursuing him for.

“He told her to wipe the knives, which were in the bag, with a tea towel. He snatched the bag off her and some items she thought were bullets fell out.”

Mr Walsh said Ritchie then hit the former nun, who was wearing spectacles, in the face, but immediately apologised and later took her to hospital where she needed stitches.

Miss Hughes told police: “I was numbed with shock to start with, then I felt like the front of my head had been pushed into the back of my head.”

She said there was so much blood coming from her nose she felt like she was under water.

John Reilly, defending, said his client was a devoted father-of-two and the incident lasted only 20 to 30 minutes.