A heavily-pregnant woman told a Kerry court on Thursday that her ex-boyfriend had “tricked her” and had treated her “like a dog”.
In the course of dramatic evidence during which she said he had breached a safety order imposed by the court, the woman claimed she thought the man was Catholic from England , but that he turned out to be Muslim from Pakistan.
Under cross-examination by the man's solicitor, David Ramsay, the woman denied she had used the man to father a child in order to secure social welfare.
“Do you know how much it is to rear a baby . . . do you know how much baby wipes cost?” the young woman asked.
Presented with printed sheets of text messages threatening the man not to interfere with her social welfare – the woman said she had never sent the texts.
She claimed he had been harassing her since their break-up in September – claiming he once threatened “to kick the child out of her” and give it to his mother.
She said she was in a local Tralee pub before Christmas with her sister and friends. She claimed he came into the pub and made a gesture indicating he would cut her throat.
Mr Ramsay put it to her that she was from a family of 12, some of whom were in and out of the courts a lot, and he questioned how this lone man could be terrifying her.
However, she said the family had all now settled down and were in relationships. The judge intervened to tell the solicitor that in fairness the family were not in court.
Mr Ramsay then handed in a letter to court written in November which he said was “a most extraordinary story of love”.
The young woman insisted she had been tricked and “when I got pregnant he treated me like a dog”.
She also said he was Muslim “and I thought he was an English Catholic”.
Giving evidence, the man, denied breaching a safety order in place since last October. He said he was appealing the safety order imposed, as he had not realised the gravity of the order and had not been in court on the day.
He deliberately avoided the woman who he said was aggressive towards him and he normally went to places she did not go.
“I believe because she is pregnant and she has hormonal shifts and it will be okay after she has the baby.”
He denied threatening to kill her in the pub in Tralee on December 16. “She is the mother of my child, I wouldn’t do that,” he said.
He was the victim of domestic violence from her and his doctor had records of broken nose. Her brother had also attacked him, he said.
Cross-examined by Inspector Paul Kennedy, the man said he had not been drunk on the occasion. He agreed he made a video on his phone of his former partner in the pub on the date in question and offered to show it to the court.
“I made a video. I wasn’t much happy – eight months pregnant and drinking,” he said.
Judge James O’Connor said a decision would have to wait until the man’s appeal against the safety order was dealt with in the Circuit Court. He adjourned the matter until April.