A VIOLENT alcoholic who threatened to cut his partner’s throat during a drunken rampage has been jailed.

Richard Rudkin was arrested after subjecting his girlfriend of five years to a terrifying ordeal at her home in Horden, near Peterlee, in August, 2015.

Durham Crown Court heard, despite bail conditions banning him from contacting her, he evaded justice by failing to attend court and living with the vulnerable woman at her house.

The court was told she suffers from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, agoraphobia and is almost bedridden.

Police were called by a carer who saw knife marks on her arm and bruises.

Christopher Baker, prosecuting, said: “During the argument the defendant picked up a knife and lunged at his partner and pinned her to the couch.

“He said: ‘I’ll go to jail for you. I’ll slice your throat.”

Rudkin shouted obscenities at her, followed her into the bathroom, pinned her to the toilet and punched her in the face.

Rudkin, 49, of Fourth Street, Horden, admitted assault, and breaching his bail conditions. A charge of making threats to kill is to lie on file.

The court was told Rudkin, a father-of-three, was drinking around nine litres of cider a day at the time of the attack and could not remember what happened.

His victim initially wanted a restraining order, but on Friday the court was told she no longer supports the prosecution and the couple are engaged to be married.

Jonathan Harley, mitigating, said: “There is no getting around the fact this was a very nasty offence and must have been very frightening for the victim.”

Judge Christopher Prince rejected an appeal to suspend custody and imposed a two-and-a-half year prison sentence.

He said: “This was a serious example of domestic violence against a very vulnerable woman.”