Mayo court hears man attempted to strangle ex in front of daughter

Man appeared in court after he was charged with assault following incident in the family home

By Anton McNulty Published 1st Jul 2026, 18:30 BST The man appeared in court accused of assaulting his ex-partner | File pic Man appeared in court after he was charged with assault following incident in the family home Sign up to our Mayo Live newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know you can manage your profile, and explore all of the available newsletters from Mayo Live within your account.

A MAYO man who is accused of attempting to strangle his former partner around the neck and threatening to burn down the family home was remanded in custody.

The man who cannot be named due to reporting restrictions appeared before Castlebar District Court after he was arrested and charged with assault causing harm to his former partner and criminal damage.

Gardaí informed Judge Michael Connellan that they were objecting to the man being released on bail as they were afraid he may return to the family home in west Mayo and threaten his ex-partner and interfere with witnesses.

Due to solicitors withdrawing their services in criminal cases, the defendant was not represented but he informed Judge Connellan that he wished to apply for bail.

During the bail hearing, the court heard that the couple were still living together with their children despite their relationship ending.

It is alleged that at 11.45pm on June 29 last, the man went into his ex-partner's bedroom and strandled her on the bed accusing her of being unfaithful before taking her mobile phone.

The court heard that it is alleged he hit her in the chest and screamed at her and gardaí said that some of the incident was recorded by their teenage daughter.

Judge Connellan was informed that it is also alleged he screamed at his teenage daughter and smashed the mobile phone.

It is also alleged that the man threatened to burn the family home and went outside and brought in a can which they believed contained petrol and started to pour it. It is alleged he told his ex-partner to take the children out of the house and poured the contents of the can on her.

The court was also informed that it is alleged he struck her four or five times and threw her on the ground before grabbing her around the neck and strangled her.

Gardaí stated that when they arrived at the scene, they noticed bruising and spattering of blood on the defendant's ex-partner and he was verbally abusive and intoxicated. The court was told that he has issues with alcohol and he may face more serious charges.

Evidence given by the defendant's ex-partner said she feared for her safety if he was given bail and she wants to keep her family safe.

The defendant claimed that what the court heard was blown out of proportion and he did not know the charges would be as serious. He said he has worked hard for the last 20 years for his family and if he goes to jail he will lose his job.

Judge Connellan said that given the seriousness of the allegations against the defendant and the concerns raised in court, he was remanding him in custody until July7. However, he added that because he was not legally represented he would grant him the liberty to apply for bail and also granted him legal aid to appoint a solicitor.