Victim's relief as her attacker is sent to prison

Paul Smith, 49, launched the attack on Angie Squires, 56, in her Portsmouth flat and afterwards he had the gall to lie saying he had hepatitis C so that she would have to have unnecessary medication.

Speaking after the court case Mrs Squires, a mum-of-four, said: ‘I’m relieved that he’s finally out of my life. I only wish that he had got longer.’

Smith was sentenced to a total of 25 months in jail; 20 months for the assault and four months for a public order offence after he hurled homophobic abuse at a police officer when he was taken in to custody. He was also given a one-month sentence for a breach of a conditional discharge for a further public order offence last year.

Portsmouth Crown Court heard Smith had 20 previous convictions, including some from Florida in the 90s – which he disputed.

His defence Jonathan Lewis said that Smith had a ‘split personality’ which was made worse by drink.

He also said that Smith, who is originally from America, had PTSD after he had served in the US Marine Corps, although the prosecution said they could find no evidence of his enrolment.

Mr Lewis said: ‘In terms of the future, he says that when he is eventually released, his ultimate aim is to leave these shores. He wants to return to America.’

Smith was last released from prison in September and he went to live with Mrs Squires, with whom he had been in a relationship for nearly a year, in Surrey Street.

Smith had been drinking on November 23, the night before the assault and in the morning he tried to start a fight with Mrs Squires in her bedroom. When she threatened to call the police, he grabbed her phone.

As she tried to get her phone back, he bit her arm twice before holding a pillow over her face.

Mrs Squires escaped and fled into the street in her pyjamas, before calling police from a nearby payphone.

After he was arrested, Smith subjected the police officer to a torrent of homophobic abuse and spouted lies, telling them he was suffering from hepatitis C to cause further upset to Mrs Squires.

Judge Sarah Munro said: ‘Whilst police officers must act robustly, he said it exceeded all that he had experienced in the past and it had a negative effect on him.’

Judge Munro said Smith had subjected Mrs Squires to ‘gratuitous degradation’ in her own home, before she sent him to prison, while he shouted profanities from the dock.

Speaking outside the court, Mrs Squires, a grandmother-of-12, said she was relieved the ordeal was over as Smith had often verbally abused her, calling her ‘scar face’.

She survived a horrific accident in 1968, where a gas bottle exploded in a tent, killing her sister and leaving her mother permanently disabled.

As a result of this incident, Mrs Squires has scarring on her arms, body and face.

Mrs Squires said: ‘When he called me scar face, that hurt. Anybody can call me anything, but don’t refer to my burns as I still have nightmares about it now.’

She added: ‘He’s got no respect for anything, full stop.’