Man accused of trying to strangle pregnant partner and putting her in a headlock refused bail at Derry court

Gary Neeson, 30, of Richmond Avenue in Derry, appeared on a number of charges of domestic abuse between January and August this year.

Neeson was charged with inflicting grevious bodily harm on his former partner between January and February this year.

He was also charged with harassing her in August of this year.

A police officer connected the accused to the charges and opposed bail.

She told the court that police had been told Neeson had put the alleged victim in a headlock when she was 12 weeks pregnant, causing her to bang her head.

He was also alleged to have strangled her to the point where she believed she was going to die.

Neeson denied ever being violent with her.

The officer also said that Neeson had allegedly called the victim 107 times in the space of seven days from prison between August 24 and August 30.

The alleged victim, who was six months pregnant with Neeson's baby, said that this had taken a serious toll on her mental health.

Neeson has 72 previous convictions, including assault on other former partners, the court was told.

Police objected to bail, saying that he is a 'serial perpetrator of domestic abuse' with ten previous breaches.

Defence counsel Eoghan Devlin asked for the accused to be released on bail with strict conditions.

District Judge Barney McElhom denied bail and remanded Neeson in custody to appear again next month.