Man threatened to pour acid over his former partner, court hears

A woman has been granted a protection order after she told a court her former partner threatened to pour acid over her.

The woman told Dublin District Family Court on Tuesday that she broke up with the man in recent months and had to flee her home after he found out where she was living.

The woman said she has been getting text messages from the man “telling me he’s going to pour acid on me and is looking for me”.

The woman said he had been physically and verbally abusing towards her in the past and had kicked her in the back and called her “a tramp”.

She said her former partner had recently found out where she was living and was “seen in the area”. She said the man texted her saying he knew the road she was living on and so she left immediately and is now staying in a women’s refuge where she said she feels safe.

The man was not present in court.

Judge John O’Leary granted the woman a protection order on an ex-parte (one side only represented) basis against the man, which prohibits him from using or threatening to use violence.

A full hearing, which the man is expected to attend, was set for a later date.

Physical abuse

In a separate case, a woman told the court her former partner punched her in the head twice after he found out she had a new partner.

The woman told the court she and the man have a child together. She said the man was dropping the child back to her home after an access visit when a person who lives nearby told the man she was seeing a new partner.

The woman said her former partner asked her if her new partner had been introduced to their children. The woman told the court he got “real aggressive” and said that the person who had told him about her new partner “would be watching”.

The woman said her former partner asked her “did I want a dig” and that was he was coming “closer and closer” to her and subsequently punched her twice in the head.

She said this was the second incident, following “another incident” during lockdown. The man was not present in court.

The judge granted the woman a protection order on an ex-parte basis against the man and set a full hearing, which the man is expected to attend, for a later date.

Death threat

In another case, a woman secured a protection order against her ex husband. The woman told the court that earlier this month she had a missed call from the man and called him back.

She said her ex husband was “incoherent” and didn’t know why he had called her. The woman said he told her that he had taken drugs.

The woman said she told him that she had concerns about him having access to their daughter. The woman said her former husband told her “he was going to kill me”.

The woman said the man has problems with alcohol and that she had spoken to him a few times on the phone recently and he had been incoherent.

She said she fears for her safety as the man had been violent during their relationship and had previously threatened to kill her and her family.

The judge granted the woman a protection order on an ex parte basis against the man and set a full hearing, which the man is expected to attend, for a later date.