A BARROW man who strangled and threatened to kill his pregnant partner and his unborn baby in their home has been jailed.

Frankie Bircher, 30, told his partner: ‘You better shut up or I am going to kill you and the baby’ after strangling her for 10 minutes, a court heard.

The incident happened at around 10pm at a property on Glasgow Street.

The court heard that, on the night in question, Bircher and his partner went upstairs to bed where Bircher subsequently asked for 'a cuddle'.

When he was refused, he 'grabbed the victim by her throat and pushed her up against the wall', where he kept her in place for 'about 10 minutes' and proceeded to 'dig his fingers into her neck', the court heard.

During the incident, the defendant said: "I am going to throw you down the stairs."

The court heard that, on the morning after, Bircher 'acted as normal', with his defence solicitor James Priest saying he still had no recollection of the event.

The defendant's past convictions were brought forward to the presiding judge as part of the sentencing.

In 2014, Bircher was convicted of battery of another domestic partner, who was also pregnant at the time.

In a statement prepared by the victim, she explained that, in the wake of the incident, she still felt 'uneasy with his contact'.

"I couldn't tell my family because I was scared of how they would react," she added.

It was only in the weeks that followed that the victim brought the incident up with Bircher, who 'did not recall the incident'.

He was sentenced at Preston Crown Court after pleading guilty to intentional strangulation and assault by beating.

The judge took into account the fact that a support worker from the mental health charity Mind had gone on record in support of Bircher, whose ADHD diagnosis was said to impact his 'impulsivity and decision making'.

Bircher was said to have not drunk alcohol once since that date in January, which had been listed as the 'driving force' behind the incident, and he is expected to receive 'ADHD medication' again from July 6.

While the defendant did not remember the incident, he accepted that what the victim 'says happened'.

"I deserve to get what I get," he added.

Bircher was handed an immediate 24-month custodial sentence with a concurrent sentence of three months for beating.

This will involve up to 12 months in custody and then a further 12 months on licence.

A restraining order was also put in place for an indefinite period, preventing Bircher from contacting the victim directly or indirectly unless through pre-approved channels on the topic of child services.

The restraining order bans Bircher from approaching the victim in person, as well as entering the property on Glasgow Street.