A MAN who split open his ex-partner’s eyebrow with a single punch while burning her cheek with a cigarette has avoided jail.

Jalees Littlewood attacked his ex-partner of nine years at their former Manchester Road home during an argument over whether she should move into her mum’s empty house in Leftwich.

The 31-year-old ran at her from upstairs and punched her as she was trying to leave through the front door, but he had a cigarette in his hand as he did it.

She suffered a burn to her cheek and a serious cut to her eyebrow, which was later stitched up by her own grandmother, who was a nurse.

The former couple have a son together, but he wasn’t in the house at the time of the attack.

Littlewood denied assaulting her, claiming it was an accident, and chose to stand trial in October 2022, but was found guilty.

He appeared before Warrington magistrates for sentencing on Friday, January 12, were he was also sentenced for two unrelated offences of driving while disqualified and without insurance, both on December 30, 2023.  

Prosecuting, Nicola Parr said the injury Littlewood inflicted was ‘quite significant’, and the offence was aggravated by being a domestic incident.

She added Littlewood, who has seven convictions, also behaved badly in previous relationships, and at the moment, does not have access to his son.

In relation to the driving offences, she explained Littlewood was stopped by police in High Park Street, Liverpool, while he was only halfway through a four-year ban for driving after taking cocaine and cannabis, twice in one month.

Defending, Sam Fixter said: “This assault was a short-lived incident which took place four years ago, against a woman who is not otherwise considered vulnerable.

“My client describes it as ‘a tussle’, and says she came by her injury when she was trying to stop him getting out of the front door.

“There was no planning or premeditation, and this is the only instance of an offence against the person on Mr Littlewood’s record, before or since.

“With this in mind, the court could step back from imposing an immediate custodial sentence today.”

Speaking of Littlewood’s driving offences, Mr Fixter said his client was in the car with his dad at the time, who suffered a medical episode which meant he was unfit to drive.

Passing sentence, chairman of magistrates, Stephen Storey, said: “While your driving record is absolutely appalling, you are otherwise relatively lightly convicted.

“However, taken together, these offences clearly cross the custody threshold.

“If we do draw back from imposing an immediate custodial sentence today, it will be on condition you aren’t convicted of another offence in the next two years.”

Littlewood, now of Ralph Avenue, Hyde, was sentenced to 26 weeks in prison, suspended for two years.

He must also complete 120 hours unpaid work and a 6-month drug rehabilitation requirement.

His driving ban was also extended to 40 months in total, and he was ordered to pay £640 court costs, and a £154 victim surcharge.

Magistrates also imposed a restraining order, banning him from contacting his ex-partner by any means for two years, other than via Social Services over access to their son.