A MAN who described himself as his partner’s “guardian angel” has been jailed after launching a vicious attack on her on a garage forecourt.

Bare chested Ian McLaughlin, 50, chased terrified Anne Kisilevych from his flat before dragging her to the floor by her hair at Parkview petrol station in Kearsley before repeatedly kicking her to the head.

The Bolton News:

The assault only ended when a brave motorist confronted McLaughlin and rescued his victim who was left with concussion and bruising.

Appearing at Bolton Crown Court, via video link from HMP Forest Bank, for sentencing, McLaughlin smirked and regularly interrupted prosecutor John Richards as he described the incident, which took place on July 11 this year.

Mr Richards said McLaughlin and Ms Kisilevych had been together for about 10 years during which time he had been repeatedly violent and abusive due to his drinking.

On July 11, the couple were in McLaughlin’s flat on Parkview, Kearsley, where after drinking for 11 hours he began crying before Ms Kisilevych tried to comfort him.

After pulling off his shirt, he began punching his girlfriend who escaped from the flat at around 11.30pm and ran to the nearby petrol station where a staff member refused her entry.

CCTV footage shown to the court, showed McLaughlin following her on to the forecourt where he could be seen knocking signs over before dragging her to the floor and kicking her repeatedly in the stomach, back and head.

Mr Richards said McLaughlin was breaching the terms of a restraining order not to go to the petrol station after previously causing trouble there.

He added that the attack only ended when a member of the public struck McLaughlin before rescuing Ms Kisilevych and driving her home where she called the police.

When they arrived they found McLaughlin, who had previous convictions for assaulting both Ms Kisilevych and her daughter, with blood on his face, shouting “don’t come near me or I’ll t*** you”. He later told police in interview that he regarded himself as Ms Kisilevych’s “guardian angel”.

In a victim impact statement by Ms Kisilevych, which was read to court, she said the couple had now split up and she felt like she had “wasted ten years of her life”.

Nick Ross, defending, said his client had already spent four and a half months in prison during which time he had been unable to celebrate his 50th birthday.

He added that McLaughlin was now “trying to grasp the nettle” and deal with his drinking after “a good rethink”.

Jailing him for 20 months, Judge Richard Gioserano, who noted that the defendant had been laughing during proceedings, told McLaughlin: “In my judgement I have given you every opportunity to be remorseful or contrite but from what I have seen there is no realistic prospect of rehabilitation in your case.”