Husband poured petrol on wife

A Powys man poured petrol over his wife's head and threatened to burn down their house, a court heard.

Gareth Robert Sinclair, of Mochdre Lane in Newtown, also told his wife, Helen, he would kill himself during a heated argument in their home.

Sinclair, 42, admitted assault by beating and threatening to commit criminal damage.

He was given a 12-month supervision order for each offence, to run concurrently, and ordered to pay £43 in costs.

Miss Margaret Roberts, prosecuting, told Welshpool Magistrate's Court yesterday that between January 1 and 21 this year Sinclair made several threats to destroy the property.

She said: "On January 21 police received a call from one of their children saying that he was concerned about his father.

"Officers went to the home address and found the defendant and his wife with visible injuries to her face.

"She said that two weeks before he had poured petrol down her stairway, threatening to burn down the house. Mrs Sinclair said she believed he was suffering from some sort of mental health problems.

"On that day he picked up the petrol and talked about doing it to himself.

"He then poured it over her head, which ran into her eyes, and then poured petrol all over himself, threatening to kill himself. It was sometime after this that he punched her to the face."