A MARPORT man who was unhappy that his estranged partner had found a new boyfriend ripped up the man's clothes, a court heard.

That criminal damage and two occasions when Carl Porter, 34, made threatening phone calls in the aftermath of the relationship running into trouble led to him being held in custody for six weeks, Carlisle Crown Court heard.

The defendant, of Ennerdale Road, Maryport, admitted causing criminal damage and two malicious communications offences.

Porter and the woman involved were in a long-term relationship and this 'notionally' came to an end and was followed by her finding a new partner, the court heard.  This caused tension between them.

At 7pm, on February 19, prosecutor Tim Evans told the court, the woman was at a local takeaway restaurant and the defendant was also there. “There was an argument on the street,” said Mr Evans, explaining that Porter then left.

The defendant then called her and verbally abused her while she told him she just wanted to be left alone. Police bailed Porter, with a condition that he was not to contact the woman.

On March 29, the woman was at her home address in the afternoon when Porter arrived and, uninvited, walked into the house through the back door and went straight to the hallway.

Finding the man's shirts were hanging there, he proceeded to rip them up.  “The defendant was verbally abusive and refusing to leave,” said Mr Evans. Porter destroyed three shirts, each worth £40.

In a later phone call, said Mr Evans, Porter made numerous threats and said he would “stab and kill” the woman’s new partner and get other people to smash her windows, said Mr Evans.

He said he would be waiting outside in the morning when the new partner left the house for work, the court heard. When interviewed by the police, Porter said the woman “actively encouraged” him to visit her home.

Peter Wilson, defending, said the woman involved had come to court to support the defendant, who wanted to support her and their child. Porter had already served the equivalent of a three-month jail term while on remand for his offending.

Recorder Tony Hawks told Porter, whose criminal record covered “all sorts of offences", this his prosecution was the result of the “ill-tempered” behaviour he displayed when the relationship ran into trouble.

He said all relationships have their ups and downs but this should not include destroying clothes and making abusive phone calls. The Recorder said he hoped the time Porter spent in custody brought that home to him.

He imposed three months jail, meaning Porter has already completed that sentence. The defendant must also pay £250 costs and a victim surcharge.