Maths teacher, 26, jailed for biting girlfriend’s ear in row
A WOMAN needed plastic surgery after a maths teacher bit part of her ear during a heated row.
Carl Melhuish bit the ear of his then partner, Fiorella Topazio, after he had been drinking.
Bristol Crown Court was told the couple had a “troubled, dysfunctional” relationship.
Melhuish, 26, of Dol Nant in Dderwen, Bridgend, was found guilty of causing grievous bodily harm with intent in November last year. Judge Michael Longman jailed him for five years.
He told Melhuish: “It was a very serious injury. You caused it with your teeth. You used your teeth as a weapon.”
Ms Topazio read an impact statement in which she said that her ear injury caused her “excruciating pain” and she had undergone plastic surgery and suffered flashbacks.
She said she no longer felt comfortable in her home, where the assault happened, and Melhuish had not indicated remorse to her.
Nicholas Gedge, defending, said: “It was clearly a volatile relationship. At times, from both sides, there were intemperate feelings.”
Mr Gedge said Melhuish had developed difficulties with depression, which were ongoing.
He said: “Many speak of his excellent qualities as a teacher. It was a career hard fought for. It is a career now lost.”