PAUL WILLIAMSON

A man who strangled his partner and set fire to a dog has been jailed for his “inexcusable” crimes.

Paul Williamson, aged 53, also set fire to their living room carpet during a drunken rage which lasted hours on 5 January this year.

Thankfully the dog – a female German Shepherd – escaped serious injury after Williamson had used a towel to extinguish the flames along her back within seconds and he put out the fir on the carpet before it could spread further.

The impact on his partner, however, was profound and she has since separated from him.

Nottingham Crown Court heard Williamson had developed a drinking problem which was thought to have made his behaviour worse.

On the day in question, he woke up on a sofa in the middle of the afternoon and smashed his partner’s phone after making accusations towards the victim.

Williamson then poured white spirit on the carpet and set a small patch on fire, saying “I’ll burn the house down”.

In the hours that followed, the court heard how he twice strangled her, set fire to her dog, grabbed her by the hair, struck her with a walking stick and used a dog lead in an attempt to strangle her for a third time.

The violent episode ended when he sent her out to buy him cigarettes which gave the victim a chance to ring Nottinghamshire Police.

Officers immediately attended the Rainworth address and arrested Williamson.

Williamson answered ‘no comment’ to all questions which were put to him during a police interview but then went on to plead guilty to charges of: arson with intent to endanger life, two counts of intentional strangulation, attempted intentional strangulation, causing unnecessary suffering to a dog and two counts of assault by beating and criminal damage.

At his sentencing hearing on Wednesday (18 June), Williamson, of Coopers Rise, Rainworth, was jailed for four years which will be followed by an extended licence period of two years and he was also handed an indefinite restraining order.