North Queensland man and ex-soldier jailed in Townsville District Court for shock choking of the mother of his children

An ex-soldier who strangled the mother of his children in front of them as they wailed in fear, has re-lived his horror acts as the recording played in court before his sentence *Warning: distressing*

IN COURT: North Queensland man and ex-soldier jailed in Townsville District Court for shock choking of the mother of his children Photo: Halfpoint/iStock

Blood curdling shrieks and weeping children were heard from the audio recording played in court recently that depicted disturbing scenes of a man who strangled the mother of his four children to the point where she blacked out, while in their kids’ presence.

A North Queensland father, and ex-soldier who completed tours in the Middle East for many years appeared in Townsville District Court this week for a violent attack on his partner.

The man aged in his 40s who legally can’t be named to protect the identity of the victim and children was dressed in a long-sleeved blue and black fishing shirt, with his family members, including the victim sitting behind him in the courtroom.

Crown prosecutor Laura Moore detailed the events that occurred last year, explaining things kicked off when the man who had already been drinking alcohol, asked his wife to drive him to the bottle shop for “more beers” and she declined.

“He called her derogatory names, the eldest child became involved and he made further remarks designed to humiliate her in front of the children,” Ms Moore said.

The crown’s report was supported by an audio file, recorded by one of the children on their phones at the time of the offence and was played in court.

In the recording, the man and woman were heard arguing before the man called her a ‘wh-re’, which was followed by the woman slapping the man on the face.

What followed afterwards were thuds, children screaming and crying, and one of the children yelling ‘What the f--k dad?’ then a wave of wailing by the four children yelling ‘Mum, mum’.

While listening to the recording, the man sitting in the dock, hung his head.

The court was told the former soldier had choked the woman and pushed her against a wall until she lost consciousness and fell to the ground in front of her children, the youngest being seven years old.

Judge Carl Heaton shared parts of the report and recounted that when police arrived, the man told them his partner had hit and slapped him, and made up a cover up story on how she blacked out.

“You denied choking her and told police she lost consciousness as a result of her having a seizure, tripping over on her feet and hitting her head,” he said.

Arrest generic Townsville.

Defence barrister Michael Hibble pleaded with the court that the former soldier was not filled with ill-intentions but had a raft of mental health problems at the forefront of his offending after fighting on the frontline.

“My client is not evil, he has significant problems that need to be addressed,” he said.

“I’m throwing my client under the bus in a sense but the reality is, he’s a (middle-aged) man who has an outstanding work history.

“He’s served this country and fallen on hard times in sense of his mental health issues but he’s got to pull his socks up and do something about it, it’s as simple as that.”

However, this was not the first instance of a domestic violence offence as the man had been sentenced for 37 contraventions of a domestic violence order in the Townsville Magistrates Court previously.

Mr Hibble detailed the man’s struggles post army and said seeing people he knew be killed had taken a toll on himself and his relationship with the mother of children.

“He was medically discharged in 2018 and has significant psychological and physical issues,” he said.

“He resorted to attempting to hide his demons with alcohol and lost his licence for drink driving.”

Judge Heaton took the psychological distress of the man into account while sentencing him, as well as the distress he had inflicted upon his own family.

“The trauma of the event is palpable in that recording,” he said.

“The undoubted impact and fear your family experienced as a result of your actions on that occasion is patently obvious.

“It is to your credit you have served our country and in many ways the personal toll it’s taken is not of your own doing, however the impact it has on the community is what I need to balance it against.”

The man pleaded guilty to choking in a domestic setting.

He was sentenced to three and a half years’ jail, with 120 in pre-sentence custody being declared as time served. A parole eligibility date was set to November 3, 2024.

Originally published as North Queensland man and ex-soldier jailed in Townsville District Court for shock choking of the mother of his children