A recently-released prisoner jailed for long-term abuse of his partner attacked his nephew because he was “irritable” after stopping smoking.
Aaron Urquhart, 41, of Station Road, Conon Bridge, had been jailed for three years for beating his partner so severely with a boot she thought she was going to die.
Inverness Sheriff Court was also told that Urquhart subjected his Swedish girlfriend to a decade of domestic violence and had a stun gun.
But a month after his early release on a tag and a domestic detention curfew, Urquhart seized 20-year-old Corey Urquhart by the throat and struck him on the head on October 23 this year.
He was returned to prison to complete the unexpired portion of his sentence and found guilty after trial in November of assaulting his relative.
The offence took place in the Conon Bridge home of Urquhart’s mother – who is Corey’s grandmother – when Urquhart reacted angrily to the way his nephew was talking to the 73-year-old.
When Urquhart appeared for sentence yesterday, his lawyer Clare Russell told Sheriff David Sutherland: “He had given up smoking just before this and was irritable. He didn’t like the way his nephew was talking to his mother.
“In prison, he has tackled his substance and alcohol abuse problem and his earliest release date is February next year. He will be able to return to his mother’s address because his nephew has moved out.”
Sheriff Sutherland jailed Urquhart for four months, backdated to October 23.
At the trial, Urquhart admitted grabbing the young man’s clothing and slapping him on the head.
The court heard Corey had a heated argument with his pensioner grandmother – Aaron Urquhart’s mother – over his untidy room.
Urquhart heard the raised voices and told police: “I saw red and just snapped. I have let everybody down.”
