A MAN who attacked his partner with a beer can after she claimed he was talking to teenage girls online has been told he will likely have to pay her compensation.

Alexander Irvine launched the assault on the woman by kicking her to the head and body at a home on Queens Avenue, Haddington.

He also caused his partner to fall to the ground during the assault before he struck her to the head with the beer can, causing her to lose consciousness, on November 13, 2022.

The woman required hospital treatment following the attack and Edinburgh Sheriff Court was told that she required six stitches to a head wound.

Irvine, of Brierbush Road, Macmerry, pleaded guilty to the assault charge that was prosecuted under Section 1 of the Abusive Behaviour and Sexual Harm (Scotland) Act 2016 and was aggravated by abuse of his partner.

The 31-year-old was in the dock at the Capital court on Friday, after sentence had previously been deferred for the preparation of reports and for the defence to provide information regarding the background to the incident.

READ MORE: Beer can attacker Alexander Irvine admits assaulting partner

Previously, solicitor Cameron Tait, representing Irvine, told the court that the assault had taken place after the woman had written social media posts claiming that Irvine had “been talking to 15-year-old girls” online.

The lawyer said that “a third party” had sent his client screenshots of the social media messages and told the court: “It is clear the relationship is at an end.”

On Friday, solicitor Jonathan Campbell produced “a litany of [text] message” printouts that he said “do not paint Mr Irvine and the complainer in a very good light”.

Mr Campbell said: “Mr Irvine is well aware that if the court does impose an alternative to custody, [the sentence] will be at the higher end.”

The court heard that Irvine was in full-time employment but was attempting to set up his own handyman business.

All the productions were handed to the sheriff for his deliberation.

Custody warning

Sheriff Alistair Noble said that Irvine is currently under the terms of a previously imposed court community order where he was being supervised by the local social work department.

Sheriff Noble said: “You appear before me as someone with a relatively limited record.

“You were quite recently placed on a community payback order with a supervision requirement. It appears to me that there is a possibility that this case can be dealt with in a non-custodial way.”

The sheriff deferred sentence for six months for Irvine to be of good behaviour and for him to comply with his current community payback order conditions.

He was told to bring £1,500 with him to court on the next occasion, as a compensation order in favour of the complainer would likely be imposed along with an unpaid work order.

The sheriff added: “If you fail to comply, custody will be a probable outcome.”

Irvine admitted to assaulting his partner at a property on Queens Avenue, Haddington, on November 13, 2022.

The offence was committed while Irvine had been granted bail on March 21, 2022.