Children in tears as man assaults mum, smashes window

FEARFUL of being sent to prison the next day, a domestic abuser convinced his ex-wife to let him see her and their children before assaulting her in public.

Steven Mark Foster assaulted his ex-wife in-front of their two children. Picture: Pexels

FEARFUL of being sent to prison the next day, a domestic abuser convinced his ex-wife to let him see her and their children before assaulting her in public.

Leading up to the incident on August 30, Steven Mark Foster, 30, made several calls and text messages to the mother of his two children saying he wished to see them before his court hearing on August 31.

A court heard she picked him up about 11am and drove the four of them to Maroochydore, but less than two hours later his behaviour took a turn for the worse.

Foster told his children, "Mummy is putting Daddy in jail" and when they started to cry their mother pulled into a carpark.

He then grabbed the woman by the head and after she told him to leave the car, he reached over and partially snapped the key out of the ignition.

Foster left the car, but when his ex began to ring the police he started yelling and bent her car window until it smashed.

When interviewed by police, Foster denied acting violently and said the window smashed when she wound it up while his arm was reaching inside.

On Friday, Foster pleaded guilty in Maroochydore Magistrates Court to single counts of common assault, wilful damage and breaching a domestic violence order.

Lawyer Rosie Killip told the court her client's wife had left him after he was laid off in 2016 and he turned to drugs and alcohol to cope.

Magistrate Hadyn Stjernquist described Foster's behaviour as "cowardly" and sentenced him to six months' imprisonment for each offence, suspended for 12 months.