'Joker' choked woman with housecoat cord during Redding assault

After his partner managed to get him to stop hurting her friend, Steven Ritchie (35) said he was “only joking”.

Ritchie appeared from custody via video link at Falkirk Sheriff Court on Thursday having pleaded guilty to assault on November 16, 2018 and behaving in a threatening manner on July 27, 2018 and December 7 at an address in Brown Crescent, Redding.

Procurator fiscal depute Nhabella Ruhmatullah said: “It was 9.40pm the witness arrived at the house and noticed the accused was behaving strangely. She realised he did not want her in the house.

“His tone of voice was aggressive towards her. She went into the kitchen to listen to music and the accused was behind her. He put a housecoat tie around her neck and he pulled it back straight across her neck.

“This hurt her windpipe and she was struggling to breathe. The accused’s partner pulled his hand off the woman. The accused said ‘I was only joking.”

The woman contacted police a couple of days later.

Sheriff Derek Livingston said: “She came to the conclusion that someone throttling you from behind was not normal behaviour.”

Ritchie's animosity toward’s his partner’s friend had also reared its head earlier in the year.

The procurator fiscal depute said: “The complainer and the accused decided to have friends over for drinks and the complainer invited her friend and they started to drink wine.

“The accused was offered a drink, however, he took the wine and poured it down the drain while staring at his partner’s friend. The complainer and her friend continued drinking downstairs and the accused went upstairs, kicking a stair guard at the top of the stairs, causing some damage.

“The accused’s partner’s friend was furious at the accused’s behaviour and said she wouldn’t visit the house while he was there.”

Even when his partner’s friend was not in the house, Ritchie could be a bad tempered menace.

“At 5am the complainer was in her bed and her child came through,” said the procurator fiscal depute. “The accused came in and shouted at her to put the child back to his own bed, which she did.

“However, the accused then started playing music very loudly and came into the bedroom, shouting and swearing at the complainer. As she left her son’s room the accused grabbed her arm and pushed her, causing her to fall to the floor."

The court heard Ritchie and his partner had met each other online and at the time of the offences he was described as being “emotionally immature” and there was some “jealously” on his part regarding his partner’s relationship with her friend.

Ritchie was said to be a “quite a needy” person who had still to come to terms with his mother's death in 2017 and was drinking too much.

It was stated Ritchie’s relationship with his partner was now over.

Sheriff Livingston said: “I’m very unimpressed with your behaviour in these matters.”

He fined Ritchie, 2 Pankhurst Loan, Dalkeith, £1300 to be paid back at a rate of £25 per week.