Jury convicts brutal lover

During a four day trial at Warrington Crown Court, a jury heard how the man, who cannot be named for fear of identifying his victim, subjected the woman to violence and intimidation throughout their relationship.

The court heard how the man carried out a series of brutal assaults on his former partner and saw any man who came into contact with her as a threat.

He punched her in the face, causing her nose to bleed and leaving bruising around her eyes, hurled a bunch of keys in her face, chipping her tooth, and rammed her head into a bedroom wall, the court heard.

When she left him after the final assault, he threatened to kill himself, and begged her to talk to him.

When she went to his flat, the beatings continued over three days, with the woman being too petrified to leave him.

They culminated in the rape, which took place when the woman's nose was so blocked with blood that she was unable to breathe.

He accused her of smirking at him, then raped her saying: "You're a bitch and I'm going to treat you like one," ignoring her as she begged him to stop.

The police were called to his house when her mother grew concerned for her daughter's safety.

When they knocked on the door, he told her to hide in a wardrobe, but after hearing footsteps in the flat, she ran from the flat and to the safety of her mother's car.

The woman eventually told police of her ordeal the following day and her former partner was arrested and interviewed by police.

He denied the charges, claiming he had only slapped her once or twice and denied the rape, saying he loved her too much and insisted she consented.

He rebuked the false imprisonment charges throughout the trial. But a jury of seven men and five women returned a unanimous guilty verdict on three charges of assault and one charge of false imprisonment.

A majority verdict was returned on the rape count. The defendant was remanded in custody and is due to be sentenced in December.