A man has been jailed for carrying out a brutal knuckleduster attack on his partner.
Daniel Robertson, 37, appeared in the dock at Aberdeen Sheriff Court and admitted battering the woman around the head and body with the metal weapon.
The woman’s cries were so loud that they were heard by passers-by in the street, the court heard.
Police found the woman – who told them she thought she was going to die – lying in a hallway with blood around her nose and mouth.
Upon being arrested and hearing the charge he faced, Robertson responded coldly, saying simply: “Whatever”.
Fiscal depute Brain Young told the court that on May 29 this year neighbours of Robertson’s partner heard shouting, screaming and objects being thrown around her property in the Rosemount area of Aberdeen.
One neighbour left and returned at 8pm to hear the women shout “no! Don’t do that!”
“The complainer stated that the accused then punched her to the left side of her torso, which caused her a great deal of pain.
“He then punched her multiple times to the face, causing a black eye and a bleeding nose.
“The complainer also recalled the accused using a knuckleduster when punching her to the head and body.
“The accused then placed his hand around the complainer’s throat and squeezed it to the point where she could not breathe or talk.
“She then managed to break free and fled to her neighbour’s door and they called the police.”
As officers arrived they were told by passers-by that they heard a woman scream loudly from within the communal stairwell of the building.
They found the woman lying in the stairwell with ripped clothing, dried blood around her nose and mouth and swelling to her eye and lip.
She was taken to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary where doctors suspected she had also suffered a fractured rib.
The woman later told officers that during the assault she “felt like she was going to die”.
Robertson pleaded guilty to one charge of assault against his partner by striking her to the head and body using a set of knuckledusters.
‘The worst mistake of his life’
Defence agent Alex Burn told the court that the couple had been in a relationship for around 18 months before this incident.
“They are both heavy drug users and that day they had both taken crack cocaine,” he said.
“Mr Robertson said he cannot recall using the knuckleduster whatsoever – but he does not seek to minimise his actions.
“This is his first domestic charge and he describes it as the worst mistake of his life.”
Sheriff Graham Buchanan told Robertson that “it goes without saying that this is a very serious matter indeed”.
“It’s a very nasty assault involving seizing your partner to the throat causing her breathing to become restricted.
“You also used a weapon, namely a knuckleduster.”
Sheriff Buchanan sentenced Robertson, whose address was given as HMP Grampian, to three years and seven months in prison.
He also put a non-harassment order in place meaning Robertson cannot approach his partner for seven years.
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