A DRUNK man who put his former partner in fear that he was going to hit her has been ordered to pay £200 compensation to his victim.

Marian Kubacik (46), of Townhill Park, Ivinestown, was charged with unlawfully assaulting the woman on July 30, 2017.

When he entered a guilty plea at Fermanagh Magistrates Court on Monday afternoon, the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) offered no evidence in a further charge of attempted criminal damage.

The court heard that, at 12.45am on July 30, the injured party reported to police that she had been assaulted by her ex-partner, who had been drinking in the house.

The woman said that he would come round to her house regularly to see his children.

However, on this occasion, the children were on holiday in Poland and the defendant arrived to do a few jobs around the house.

The injured party told officers that Kubacik had started drinking at 7pm. He had then woke her up by shaking her at around midnight.

The woman alleged that the defendant went to hit her, but stopped before making contact.

She described him as “aggressive”, while she felt “in fear”.

When officers arrived at the scene, they observed the injured party to be in a distressed state and she appeared upset.

After the defendant was arrested, he was conveyed to Enniskillen custody suite and interviewed the next day.

Kubacik told police that he suffered from epilepsy and took medication, which caused him to “black out” when he started drinking.

He claimed to have no memory of the incident, adding that he would “never hit a woman”.

Defending counsel, Steffan Rafferty, told the court that his client was “very regretful” of the entire situation that had unfolded.

The barrister said that Kubacik was very devoted to his two children and made “considerable contributions” to their wellbeing.

Mr. Rafferty said that the defendant conveyed his apologies for all that happened on the night in question.

In mitigation, the barrister said that the Polish national had no relevant previous convictions and there was nothing violent on his record.

District judge, Michael Ranaghan, observed that this case had taken place against a background of domestic violence.

Taking into account the nature of the offence, which was a ‘technical’ assault, and the fact that the injured party didn’t have to give evidence, the judge said that, unusually, he would deal with this matter by way of a fine.

He ordered Kubacik to pay a £100 fine and a £15 offender levy.

Mr. Ranaghan also ordered the defendant to pay his victim £200 compensation, “to make up for the fear you put her through”.