A tattooed thug who hit his girlfriend and dragged her by the hair just hours after proposing marriage on her birthday has avoided jail.
Steven Grubb, 43, repeatedly assaulted the woman after their romantic trip to Edinburgh turned ugly following a row in a nightclub.
Details about the assault
The attacks – which left the victim struggling to see having suffered severe bruises – took place over a few minutes at around 3am, and resulted in passersby having to come to her aid.
Grubb had brought his partner of seven months to the Scottish capital to celebrate her birthday on January 6, proposing the same day and presenting her with a £1,500 ring, the Daily Record reports.
They got into a minor argument in a venue in the city later that evening, before ‘matters got totally out of control’, Edinburgh Sheriff Court was told.
Grubb initially struck his new fiancée in the face, and then responded with another blow when she tried to push him away.
When she then took off the engagement ring and threw it away, he followed her up the road and, grabbed her with both hands and struck her on the head.
She was dragged along the street
Grubb then tried to kick her in the head, before grabbing her by the hair and pulling her to the ground, and dragging her along the street.
The couple then tried to find the missing ring, but when they failed to do so, he again hit her and pushed her to the ground.
Police arrived and Grubb, who had previously worked as a tiler but is now unemployed, was arrested, while the victim was taken to hospital.
He pleaded guilty to assault with a domestic aggravation.
Sheriff Ian Anderson fined Grubb £640 and imposed a two-year non-harassment order.
The court was told the couple were no longer in a relationship.
