A KNIFEMAN who beat up the terrified mother of his son, held the blade up and threatened, “I’m going to kill you by the end of the night,” a court heard.

Burnley Crown Court was told how heroin addict David Thorburn, 45, had subjected Delia Johnson, who he separated from19 years ago, to a vicious and sustained attack after locking her into his house.

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He had struck after downing a litre of home-made vodka and was to tell police: “I was completely off my head.”

Thorburn, who now has more than 180 offences on his record, had often offended to feed his drug habit and although he had been behind bars several times, the sentences had only been short ones.

But, the defendant, father of a nine-month-old baby, is now starting a two year stretch for the incident which left Ms Johnson in fear and panic and injured.

The defendant, of Fern Isle Close, Whitworth, near Rochdale, had admitted making a threat to kill, assault causing actual bodily harm and damaging property and had been committed for sentence by East Lancashire magistrates.

Tim Brennand, defending, said Thorburn had had a “pernicious addiction to heroin,” and looked 10 years older than his age.