'Petrified' mother rushed children to the back of her Portadown home as her ex shouted 'I'm going to kill you', Craigavon court hears

Lewis Lucas, aged 33, from Churchill Park, Portadown, appeared before Craigavon Magistrates Court via video link from Maghaberry Prison.

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He pleaded guilty to threatening to kill a woman, attempted criminal damage to a vehicle and window and disorderly behaviour in Ballyoran Manor, Portadown on January 28 this year.

The court heard that police received an anonymous report on that date at 9.07pm saying the injured party’s ex-partner was ‘going mad’ outside her house.

On arrival the woman told police Lucas ‘shouted through the letter box’ and then went to the living room window ‘banging on the glass’.

He shouted: “You are a dirty tramp. I am the child’s father.”

The injured party said Lucas was outside her house for 20 minutes ‘and repeatedly come to the letter box and shouted in to his daughter’.

"The injured party was petrified and took all children to the back of the house,” said the prosecutor, adding the injured party’s current partner said he heard the defendant kicking the door, banging the window and shouting through the letterbox ‘I’m going to kill you’.

Another witness said she observed the defendant punch the rear passenger side of the injured party’s car and take photos of the number plate.

And another witness stated she heard the defendant shouting ‘Get out here now. I’ll get my child’.

District Judge Michael Ranaghan referred to previous convictions for threats to kill and criminal damage by Lucas, also aggravated by domestic abuse, and asked if it was the same injured party. He was told it was a different injured party.

Lucas’ barrister, Mr John Paul McCann, pointed to two live suspended sentences but said they were for different types of offences and urged the district judge not to activate them.

He said there hadn’t been issues with his client and the complainant in this case for seven years.

“He went to the property in a misguided attempt to see his daughter. It was not the right way to go about it at all.

"No damage was caused and it amounted to shouting nonsense and it was quite an unpleasant scene,” said Mr McCann.

"He has had his troubles in recent times,” said the barrister, who referred to a cancer diagnosis which required surgery.

“This led to him having addiction issues and mental health issues. He is struggling with his ‘new reality’ and there has been an inability to cope and has turned to drink and drugs,” said Mr McCann, adding his client has been in custody for one month and that is the equivalent to a two-month jail term.

District Judge Ranaghan told Lucas that had he contested the charges he would have been looking at a sentence of up to nine months.

For the threats to kill charge Lucas was sentenced to five months in jail. “That has been enhanced by one month to take into consideration the domestic violence aggravator,” said the district judge.

For the criminal damage he was also given a five-month term and for the disorderly behaviour he was jailed for four months, all concurrent. He also has to pay the £25 offender levy.