These are the latest ECHO headlines this morning.
Thug battered partner for 40 minutes on blood soaked bed
A woman was strangled, punched and headbutted during a 40 minute attack at the hands of her partner.
Jake Hatton, 28, appeared in Liverpool Crown Court on Monday, June 13, after being charged with attacking his partner of six months. The couple had known each other for about four years when the incidents, in which his victim was headbutted and punched, took place.
Zahra Baqri, prosecuting, said the victim described Hatton, an engineer with Open Reach, as, “being an abrupt type of person with mood changes and aggression which become more marked after his grandma passed away.”
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On March 11 this year she went out shopping with her grandmother, and when she returned to her Birkenhead home it was clear he was drinking. She had a drink with him and then went back out shopping.
When she returned he asked where she went and became increasingly agitated. Miss Barqri said: "He lent towards her with his head in her face and pushed with force. It was not a headbutt but it was a forceful push and she sustained a black eye."
She did not report the incident to Merseyside Police, but two days later he objected to her taking her three-year-old son to play at a neighbour’s home but she took him anyway. When they came back at 7pm Hatton was out, and after putting her son to bed she also retired for the night.
Read the full story here.
Dad, 26, found dead by his mum after 'falling asleep'
A family has been left “devastated” by the sudden death of a 26-year-old dad in Wirral.
Will Jones, from Wallasey, was found in the bedroom of his King Street home by mum Sharon at around 10pm on Thursday, June 2. Paramedics tried to save the dad-of-one before he was pronounced dead at 10.26pm, with the cause of death still unknown.
Family friend, Paula Harwood, 44, said: “He was literally sitting on the bed in all of his clothes and he looked like he’d just fallen asleep, there was just no knowing. He didn’t have any known underlying health conditions. It’s just so sad.”
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Will, a former pupil of The Oldershaw School in Liscard, lived with mum, Sharon Lee, and leaves behind a two-year-old daughter. And Paula, who works with Sharon at William Hill bookmakers, told the ECHO that Will’s death has impacted on the whole community.
She said: “Sharon is absolutely devastated. It could have been any one of us with children so it really cuts you to the bone that this has happened. Sharon is amazing, she’s a real firecracker with an absolute heart of gold. She’s worked for William Hill for more than 16 years and is much loved by everyone here. Everybody is just devastated and nobody has a bad word to say about Will.”
Read more here.
Expert issues warning over dog breed that is 'not a pet' being kept in homes
An expert dog trainer has issued a warning against people buying one particular breed.
Jacob Morgan, founder of the YorkshireCanineAcademy.co.uk believes that another breed of dog could soon be added to the UK's banned dogs list. The list is currently populated by the Pit Bull Terrier, the Japanese Tosa, the Dogo Argentino and the Fila Brasileiro.
Jacob, who has trained over 2,500 dogs and owns five himself, said that he thinks the next breed to be banned will be the Belgian Malinois, a variety of the Belgian Shepherd breed. He said the dog "was not a family pet" and can be problematic to own, especially for people with full-time jobs, WalesOnline reports.
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Jacob, who himself owns a Belgian Malinois, said: “Just this week I have seen five Belgian Malinois dogs looking to be re-homed via Facebook. This is frightening to see as it shows people are buying this breed of dog and not being able to care for them.
“My Belgian Malinois puppy, Stark, is 15 weeks old, and I’m with him most of the day while I train our clients' dogs. But I also have members of staff who can also make sure Stark is getting stimulated by giving him an activity to do every hour. Even as a dog trainer, if it was just me looking after Stark, I’d struggle.”
Read the full story here.
