Good morning, these are the latest ECHO headlines today.
Mum's puppy 'had face ripped off' during violent attack on evening walk
A mum's puppy was killed in a 'violent' attack by another dog that was not on a lead.
Lesley McGowan, from Dovecot, took her two dogs - Jasper and Jolene - on a walk in Dovecot Park on Saturday (March 26) when Jolene, an 11-month-old Griffon Bruxellois, was attacked by another dog. After suffering brutal injuries during the attack, including vicious wounds to her face, she was taken to a nearby vets.
However, she died on Sunday morning (March 27) as a result of the attack. Lesley spoke to the ECHO about the ordeal and how she hopes Jolene's story will encourage all dog owners to be responsible. She said: "I couldn’t see the lad at first, because the dog was further up and off his lead, but I screamed to him ‘get your dog, get your dog’. Then he came running over, I had to let my other dog Jasper go, because Jolene had ran around my ankles a couple of times and tangled me up in the lead - she was wanting me to save her.
"I had to let Jasper go because I then fell to my knees and I was trying to get up. The fella then came over because the dog had grabbed Jolene by the face and it had her by the snout. I was shouting ‘get it off, it’s killing her’ and he was saying ‘no it’s not’. Then he started trying to get his dog off."
Read the full story here.
Man spat in girlfriend's face and threatened her with a knuckle duster
A Southport man subjected his then-partner to an 'ordeal of abusive coercive behaviour' over a period of several months.
John Pitt, 39, of Leyland Road was jailed for 27 months at Liverpool Crown Court on Tuesday (March 29) having pleaded guilty to putting a person in fear of harassment. A probation report showed he represents a high risk of re-offending.
The court heard how his behaviour included spitting in her face after demanding money for beer and threatening to get her assaulted by others. Even after their four month relationship ended, he would plague her with abusive texts and phone calls.
Recorder David Knifton, QC told Pitt, who repeatedly spat in the victim’s face: “Over a period of several months you subjected her to an ordeal of abusive coercive behaviour." He added: "Your conduct was intended to maximise the fear and distress of your victim and involved persistent action over a prolonged period. It involved significant psychological harm and caused her to make significant changes to her life style to avoid contact with you."
Bernadette Campbell, prosecuting, told Liverpool Crown Court that, about four weeks after forming a relationship with his victim, Pitt “started dictating to her.” He would tell what type of food to eat, where she could go and who she could see and whether she could go to work or not.
He would call her derogatory names and say she was fat. His behaviour deteriorated further and during a row, after he demanded money for beer, he spat in her face. Miss Campbell said: “She consequently sought refuge in a neighbour’s flat”.
Read the full story here.
Where serial killer Robert Maudsley's 'Hannibal the Cannibal' nickname came from
A new TV documentary has revealed the shocking story which led to Liverpool serial killer Robert Maudsley being known as "Hannibal the Cannibal".
Maudsley has been housed in a "glass cage" at HMP Wakefield after killing four men in the 1970s. The murderer, from Toxteth, is believed to be so dangerous that he is no longer allowed to associate with other prisoners or even guards.
Maudsley first killed in 1974 having fled home at 16. He became trapped in a spiral of drug abuse, funding his habit through sex work. One of his clients, John Farrell, was his first victim.
Maudsley garrotted him after he showed him photographs of children he had sexually abused. He was jailed to life and sent to Broadmoor Hospital, which housed some of the country's most dangerous prisoners.
It was at Broadmoor where Maudsley earned his nickname and the myth about cannibalism originated. Speaking on Channel 5's HMP Wakefield: Evil Behind Bars, Maudsley's nephew Gavin Maudsley revealed how his uncle became known as a cannibal.
He said: "Broadmoor, it's my understanding that he wasn't given the treatment that he was asking for. He and another prisoner took a sexual offender into one of the rooms and they barricaded themselves in. This was a nine hour siege. Terrible things happened in that room in those nine hours."
Read the full story here.
