Sadistic man killed partner's rabbits and set her house on fire during jealous rage

William Denham bombarded his spouse with messages and video calls, threatened to termination her rabbits and pain her location down. When she didn't respond, helium followed done with his threats

A sadistic antheral who killed his partner's 2 favored rabbits by wringing their necks and acceptable occurrence to her location due to the fact that helium thought she was having an matter has been jailed.

William Denham, 44, bombarded his partner, who had been connected a nighttime retired with enactment colleagues, with messages and video calls threatening to termination her rabbits. He besides threatened to pain her location down and erstwhile she didn't respond due to the fact that she hadn't seen the messages, helium sent her pictures of the dormant rabbits successful their cage.

Ipswich Crown Court heard that Denham, who thought the unfortunate was having an affair, said: "You and your fellow are next." He past messaged her to accidental helium had buried the rabbits successful the plot and sent her a video showing a burning curtain successful her house.

When the unfortunate got location she had tried to enactment retired the occurrence with h2o successful a solid jug but Denham had deed her implicit the caput with the jug and repeatedly punched her successful the head. She had managed to fly from the location and hid down a bush earlier going to a neighbour's house.

Stephen Mather, prosecuting, said that connected the nighttime of the offences successful March the unfortunate had invited Denham to articulation her connected a nighttime retired with her enactment colleagues. However during the evening his temper had go darker the much helium drank and helium accused her of seeing 1 of her enactment colleagues.

She refused to spell location with him and helium had subsequently bombarded her with threatening messages and video calls which she didn't spot until she was successful her mode home. Judge Emma Peters described Denham's actions arsenic "horrific, depraved, sadistic and cruel" and said they were motivated by intersexual jealousy.

Denham, of Colchester, admitted arson being reckless arsenic to whether beingness would beryllium endangered, unlawful wounding and causing unnecessary suffering to 2 rabbits. The justice said helium was a unsafe offender and successful summation to a jailhouse condemnation of 4 and a fractional years, she passed an extended licence play of 4 years.

She besides banned him from contacting his ex-partner indefinitely and disqualified him from owning immoderate animals indefinitely. Steven Dyble, for Denham, accepted that his client’s behaviour had been "wicked and vindictive".

He said helium had wrongly suspected his spouse was showing an involvement successful a enactment colleague. He said that Denham had been inadequate astatine dealing with the accustomed ups and downs of relationships and was "extremely ashamed" of his actions.