A MAN who broke his pregnant partner’s arm then told police she “fell up the stairs” has been jailed and permanently banned from the estate where she lives.

Gary Peirce was convinced that Mandy Ireson, the mother of his then unborn son, was having an affair – despite having no evidence, Oxford Crown Court heard on Thursday.

During an argument at their home in Washford Glen, Didcot, on July 2 he raised his fist against her, the court was told.

She put her arm up to defend herself and Peirce, 38, punched it until it fractured.

Cathy Oliver, prosecuting, told the court Ms Ireson could not remember how many times he punched her.

Ms Oliver said the incident was not the first of its kind in the relationship, and police had been called on a number of previous occasions.

Ms Ireson did not call the police on July 2, and went into work at Tesco the next morning as usual.

Her manager saw her injuries and took her to hospital where it was found that her wrist was badly broken and needed pinning.

Ms Ireson only told police about the injury after she had to call them to another incident on July 23.

When questioned, Peirce claimed she had gone to the toilet and “fell up the stairs”.

Ms Oliver told Judge Peter Ross that Peirce, who pleaded guilty to assault causing grievous bodily harm, had a string of previous convictions for similar matters against three different partners.

Jenny McVeigh, defending, told the court Ms Ireson had given birth to Peirce’s son in October. She said he already had a “strained” relationship with his six-year-old son from a previous relationship and wanted to try to build a better bond with his new child.

Ms McVeigh said Peirce blamed his domestic abuse on an alcohol problem which stemmed from his upset over the death of his estranged father in 2012.

Judge Ross jailed Peirce for 34 months and made an indefinite restraining order, banning him from contacting Ms Ireson except through a solicitor or by a family court order to contact his son; banning him from going to any Tesco where she was known to work, and not to go anywhere on the Ladygrove estate in Didcot.

He also ordered him to pay a £900 criminal courts charge and a £120 victims’ surcharge and told the Probation Service to monitor his future relationships.