A drunken boyfriend used his teeth as a "highly dangerous weapon" to bite down on a woman's cheek during a violent confrontation in a bed and breakfast room.
Ricardo Williams pinned his girlfriend down on the bed, repeatedly punched her about the head and body and warned her: "I'm going to bite your face off" before viciously biting her and causing "extreme pain".
She was left "black and blue and bruised everywhere" after the vodka-fuelled attack and now never wanted to see him again, a court heard. Williams, 32, admitted assaulting the woman, causing actual bodily harm, in Cleethorpes on November 10, 2021, reports GrimsbyLive.
Join our WhatsApp Top Stories and Breaking News group by clicking this link
Harry Bradford, prosecuting, told Hull Crown Court that the couple were in a Cleethorpes bar after attending a family gathering and were drinking cocktails and spirits at a bar. They left at 8.30pm but an argument broke out, started by Williams.
They returned to their bed and breakfast accommodation but Williams tried to leave, saying that he was going back out. His girlfriend locked the door afterwards but, when Williams returned, he forced his way back in.
He shouted at her, pinned her to the bed, pinning her arms down, and punched her to the body and head. He told her: "I'm going to bite your face off" and bit down on her right cheek, causing extreme pain.
The police were alerted at 9.06pm after the manager was told by another guest: "They are fighting like f***." The woman later told them: "I and black and blue and bruised everywhere."
There were teeth marks on her cheek and her right eye was closing up because of swelling. Williams returned at 11pm and he was arrested.
He told police during interview that he had a four-year relationship with the woman but, that day, he saw an ex-girlfriend, leading to trouble with the woman. He claimed that he left the bed and breakfast to give his girlfriend space. He denied assaulting her or causing injuries.
The woman later said: "I can't believe what he has done. I never want to have anything to do with him again. I feel as though Ricardo will not stay away and will come back to my address even though I do not want him there."
Williams had convictions for 25 previous offences, most recently in 2019 for possessing drugs.
Benn Robinson, mitigating, said: "He is not a habitually violent person. As a younger man, he did not have much reservation about using violence." Williams had served a prison sentence in 2009.
"He has turned the corner since then," said Mr Robinson. "Other than this, there has been no violence since 2009. He managed to find some stability.
"The relationship had its ups and downs. In the main, while there were difficulties, they would always be there for each other. It's a relationship that suffered difficulties in the extreme."
They had shared two bottles of vodka. "It wasn't all one-way traffic," said Mr Robinson. "It wasn't any excuse for what he did. It was not prolonged and persistent."
Judge Sophie McKone told Williams: "You repeatedly punched her in her head and body and you told her that you were going to bite her face off. You did bite her, fortunately not breaking the skin.
"There was an element of it being prolonged. There was the use of a weapon, a highly dangerous weapon, some may say, of teeth because of the damage that teeth can do. It's clear that you blame the victim for what happened in this case."
Williams, of Avenue Road, Chesterfield, but recently in HMP Nottingham, was jailed for two years and three months. He was given a five-year restraining order.
Read more of today's top stories here
Read next:
