Telford man told pregnant wife 'I will chop your neck off' for wanting to go shopping

And when Ataf Mehmood returned to Britain on Sunday he was arrested at Birmingham Airport. The 27-year-old had threatened to chop his wife's neck off for wanting to leave the house to go shopping, Telford magistrates heard.

Mehmood, of Windsor Road, Arleston, Telford, had originally denied three charges of assault by beating – two of which involved his wife – but left the country ahead of his trial last year to accompany his mother to visit a dying relative. The third charge of assault involved a child who cannot be named.

Mehmood was convicted in his absence on December 1.

Yesterday, magistrates at Telford remanded Mehmood in custody until March 5 while he awaits sentencing, claiming there were sufficient grounds to believe he would not surrender to bail.

His solicitor had told the court that Mehmood, who had taken over the running of the Taj Mahal and Eastern Balti restaurants in Wellington following the death of his father last June, was prepared to surrender his passport.

Mr Mike Phillips, prosecuting, said the couple's relationship had deteriorated following a trip they had made to Pakistan after the death of Mehmood's father.

On their return the defendant and his mother had tried to prevent his wife from contacting her brother, who lives in Telford, and other family members, and had tried to prevent her from leaving the house, the court was told.

Mr Phillips said the victim was assaulted several times between August 5 and August 27. The final assault came on August 27 when the victim, then four months pregnant, wanted to go to Tesco to buy things for her daughter, said Mr Phillips.

Her mother-in-law had told her these could be bought for her and there was no reason why she should go out, he added.

Mehmood returned from work that day andgrabbed his wife by the hair, slapping her repeatedly and asking why she had asked his mother about leaving the house.

Magistrates were told the victim feared for the safety of her unborn child.

Following the attack, Mehmood told the victim that she could only contact her father in Pakistan and warned her: "I will chop your neck off".

Mr Phillips said the latest assault had made the victim fear for her safety and she contacted the police.

Mehmood returned to the house during the police visit and began shouting at his wife in Punjabi and while the officer had not understood he could see the woman looked intimidated, the court was told.

For Mehmood, Mr Mohammed Fiaz said that the defendant had always and continued to deny the assaults and would be seeking ways to challenge the conviction.

Mr Fiaz said the defendant was a man of previous good character who had complied with all his bail conditions.