A MAN, said to be controlling and coercive towards his former partner, has been placed on a suspended prison sentence.

A judge said that some of Thomas Andrew Rastin’s attitudes needed to be challenged.

Rastin, 26, of Chapel Row in Ffynnongroyw near Holywell, admitted harassing Adele Hough between April and June of last year, and he said he hoped that she and her new partner would die.

He admitted damaging a car belonging to her new partner Jack Donaldson.

A charge of assaulting Mr Donaldson, which he denied, was dropped.

At Flintshire Magistrates’ Court at Mold, Rastin received an 18 week prison sentence suspended for a year and he was placed on 25 days of rehabilitation.

District Judge Gwyn Jones said that work needed to take place so that he could see how relationships could be harmed by controlling and coercive behaviour.

His attitudes needed to be challenged, he said.

Rastin was also ordered to carry put 120 hours unpaid work in the community and pay £785 in costs and compensation.

Prosecutor Rhian Jackson said that the couple had two children but it was alleged that he was abusive and argumentative.

In May 2016 he broke into the home and assaulted her and he was convicted of using violence to secure entry to her home.

They split but he persuaded her to take him back on the basis that he would change and that it would never happen again.

But she ended it in April of last year because it was said he returned to his old behaviour and was argumentative and abusive, throwing things around and causing damage.

Mrs Jackson said that he texted the complainant asking her to take him back and they became threatening.

When she had a new partner, she hoped the defendant would move on but it made matters worse.

He said that the new partner had better look out and that he knew where he lived.

Included in some of the messages were “I hope you die” and he said he hoped he and the new partner would die.

On June 16 they were driving in Mr Donaldson’s car as a family when the defendant blocked their way, approached the car, punched the vehicle and bent the door back.

He later sent a message saying the new partner would end up with a deformed face.

Brian Cross, defending, said that time had passed since the offences.

He spent time with his children and he had discussed matters with his former partner.

She was not asking for a restraining order which he said “spoke volumes”.

It was accepted that she was a repeat complainant but Mr Cross suggested that the sentence could be appropriately suspended.

His client had entered his guilty plea to harassment on the basis that he had also received hurtful text messages.

Probation officer Rachel Woodcock said that the defendant was controlling and coercive and had found the ending of he relationship difficult.

He accepted that he had not dealt with it appropriately.