BIRTLEY MAN JAILED FOR ASSAULT INVOLVING STUN GUN AND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
A man named Ross Reay from Birtley has been convicted of assaulting his partner using a stun gun and other violent methods.The court heard that Reay, aged 27, had been in a relationship with the victim for two years.
His violent episode was triggered after he became upset because the woman was unable to transfer some photos onto a new phone.
During the incident, he shouted at her to remove her shoes, forcibly took them off, and then struck her with them about the head.
He also physically assaulted her by hitting, kicking, and attempting to choke her by wrapping his hand around her neck.
The victim managed to send a message to her mother for help and escaped barefoot after going outside for a cigarette.
Reay previously assaulted her by using a stun gun disguised as a mobile phone to deliver an electric shock, which he thought was humorous.
Police found the stun gun and pepper spray at his residence.
Reay pleaded guilty to possessing a prohibited firearm (the stun gun), assault by beating using the stun gun, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and possessing pepper spray.
He was sentenced to a three-year prison term.
His lawyer, Paul Cross, noted that Reay works at his family's sandwich shop and lives with his parents.
