Man Punched Ex-Partner and Broke Her Jaw

A WOMAN had her jaw broken by her violent ex-partner when he punched her in the face during a row.

Samantha Craven was left spitting blood after the incident - she lost teeth and needed surgery to insert plates into the damaged bones.

Adam Ingham had visited Ms Craven's new Littleport home to help her with some decorating - but became aggressive when they argued, Ely magistrates heard on Thursday.

He smashed a mobile phone belonging to Ms Craven's father, and kicked and damaged a door belonging to Sanctuary Hereward Housing.

Ingham also kicked Ms Craven on the side of her head, causing it to hit a wall, and punched her face, said Olivia Gooding, prosecuting.

A shocked Ms Craven told Ingham: "You have broken my jaw," and he acknowledged what he had done.

Twenty-two-year-old Ingham then took a SIM card from Ms Craven's mobile phone, and called an ambulance. He told operators that he had found a girl with a suspected broken jaw, and then left the scene.

Ingham, of Romney Marsh, admitted maliciously inflicting grievous bodily harm on Samantha Craven, damaging a Nokia phone worth £200 belonging to Stephen Carrett, and causing £233.93 worth of damage to the door of the property at Friars Way on September 15.

"He does accept he punched her and caused the injury sustained, but does not accept he kicked her face," said solicitor Adam Haselhurst. "He gave a full and frank interview to police, he did not intend to cause the level of injury he did."

The couple, who have a young child, had split up six months earlier, and Ingham had hoped there might be a reconciliation.

"There was an argument, and property of his was thrown out of a window," added Mr Haselhurst.

The court sent Ingham to Cambridge Crown Court for sentencing at a later date, and gave him conditional bail.