Coalman attacked partner for breaking his necklace, court told

A COALMAN attacked his partner and cut up her clothes in a rage at her breaking his necklace, a court heard yesterday.

Police also claimed Kevin Mcaleese urinated and threw excrement around a cell following his arrest.

The 45-year-old of Gortaheran Crescent in Portglenone, Co Antrim, is charged with common assault and two counts of criminal damage.

Ballymena Magistrates Court, sitting in Belfast, heard Mcaleese allegedly pulled his partner out of bed during a row at their home on Monday.

She told police officers at the scene that he put his foot on her neck while she was lying on the floor.

“The injured party said she then went downstairs to find items of her clothing had been cut up, and she believed Kevin Mcaleese had done this,” a PSNI constable said.

The defendant was arrested and taken into custody, but interviews were put on hold due to his level of aggression.

He had been shouting abuse and obscenities and banging his fist on a desk, it was claimed.

At one point he stuffed his trousers into a cell toilet, causing so much disruption that he had to be moved.

The court heard police later observed urine and excrement in the middle of the second cell.

“During charging [for that criminal damage] he repeatedly beat on the cell door while swearing at police,” the constable said.

“He then lifted the excrement and threw it around the cell.”

When interviews resumed, Mcaleese claimed an argument with his partner started when she got out of bed.

Both of them had fallen over while they were pushing and shoving each other, according to his account.

He said the woman had reached up and broken his silver necklace.

The PSNI officer continued: “When he was asked if he had cut up clothing belonging to the injured party, he stated that he did it in a fit of rage as he was so angry that she had broken his necklace.

“He appears to be a very angry person.”

Defence solicitor Stewart Ballentine stressed his client provided a full account to police.

Mr Ballentine added that Mcaleese could live at another address, with any access to Portglenone limited to running his coal business.

Granting bail, District Judge Mark Hamill barred the accused from going within two miles of his partner’s home.