A MAN who is alleged to have assaulted his ex-girlfriend on two occasions has told a jury he was ‘emasculated, degraded and abused in every way possible’ by his former partner.

Damian O’Sullivan is accused of spraying Febreze in his ex-partner's face and punching her to the throat and back of the head on several occasions.

The 30-year-old is currently before a jury at Preston Crown Court charged with two counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Prosecutor Hanifa Patel alleged O’Sullivan pushed his ex-girlfriend onto the bed and hit her several times to the back of the head following an argument after he had returned to the complainant’s address intoxicated in the early hours of the morning on September 10 last year.

READ MORE: Man accused of assaulting ex-girlfriend including spraying Febreeze in her face

Ms Patel said the defendant also attempted to tie her up with rope and that he had previously sprayed a bottle of Febreze in her face multiple times after the complainant had used the air freshener in an attempt to ask him to leave.

O’Sullivan was questioned about this allegation on the stand on September 4 by his defence barrister Anthony Horsfall.

In response to the questions, O’Sullivan said: “She told me not to come home and that the door was locked. She locked me out of the house on numerous occasions when I did something she didn’t approve of.”

He told jurors his ex-partner was ‘aggressive and confrontational’ when she was questioning him about other women whilst he was sitting on the sofa.

“She sprayed Febreze all over me,” Mr O’Sullivan continued. “It was dripping off me all over my body. I went upstairs and she was hitting me with the bottle.

“Her anger was borne out of deranged jealously and paranoid thinking. She would accuse me of being with absolutely everyone and everybody.

"She was delusional and very jealous. It was all very one sided.”

O’Sullivan, of Salisbury Road, Lancaster, conceded he ‘squared up’ to his ex-partner after she had thrown water over him and a mug towards his direction.

“She was hitting me with different degrees of force - enough to mark and bruise me,” he said.

“I pushed her onto the bed and put her hands behind her back. I screamed at her to leave me alone.

“At no point did I bring the rope out. I only ever threatened to tie her up. I never hit her to the back of the head.”

The court was shown pictures taken by the defendant of a black eye and scratches to his face and hand taken on September 11.

The prosecution also alleged O’Sullivan assaulted his former partner again at her home on September 17.

When outlining the case, Ms Patel said the defendant had been out drinking again when he returned to the complainant’s house at 7:15 am.

The court was told at this time the defendant threw a washing basket at the complainant and an electric fan which narrowly missed and smashed against the wall.

Ms Patel said O'Sullivan then punched the woman two or three times to the throat.

She said it came after the complainant had allegedly thrown a glass of water over O’Sullivan and asked him to leave when he returned to her property.

Crying and shaking whilst giving evidence, O’Sullivan told the jury in response to the line of questioning by his barrister: “The relationship at this time was well on its way to cutting ties.

"I was emasculated, degraded and abused in every way possible for nine months. She ruined my life.

“I got home and went straight to bed. She was irate asking where I had been. She sprayed me with Febreze again and through water over me. She also played a song called Scotty Doesn’t Know which is a song about cheating.

“She picked up anything she could and threw it at me. She through a lamp, my phone and clothes. She was just insane.

“When she started hitting me, I slapped her with an open hand. I just wanted her to stop. She had made me feel really angry. I pushed the washing basket back into her and she rang the police because she was scared.

“I never punched her with full force to the throat. If I did, I probably would have killed her.”

The trial continues.