East Lothian thug who bit girlfriend’s face during violent bust up escapes jail sentence

A vicious thug who bit his girlfriend’s face during a violent bust up has escaped a jail sentence.

Sandy Hannan launched the savage attack on partner Shannon Abraham following a drinking session at the woman’s home last year.

Hannan, 29, grabbed the woman by the throat without “any warning” before savagely biting into her face.

The attack was so ferocious that paramedics later found Hannan’s finger marks still imprinted on Ms Abraham’s neck.

Edinburgh Sheriff Court. Pic: Ian Georgeson

Shocked neighbours heard the victim’s frantic screams for help and called in police to deal with the violent argument in Dunbar, East Lothian.

Hannan pled guilty to attacking Ms Abraham and to breaching a court order to stay away from her when he appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff Court in January this year.

He returned to court today for sentencing where Sheriff Thomas Welsh QC spared the brute a custodial sentence and instead handed out a community payback order.

Hannan was placed on supervision for the next 18 months and ordered to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work.

Previously the court was told the couple had been in a relationship for around seven months and had been drinking together in the house at around 6pm on January 11 last year.

Fiscal Fiona Nairn said the couple began arguing and with “no warning he became violent to her and bit her on the chin”.

Ms Nairn said Ms Abraham fled upstairs to a bedroom where she ended up lying on a bed with Hannan standing over her.

Ms Nairn added: “While lying on the bed the accused stood over her with his hand on her neck. The complainer was unable to breath or speak.

“The complainer managed to get up and away from the accused. During this a neighbour heard the accused shouting aggressively and heard the complainer screaming as if she was in pain.”

Police rushed to the home where officers found Ms Abraham “stressed and crying and appeared to have a bite mark on her chin”.

Hannan, from Dunbar, was discovered sitting in the living room nursing a cut hand after he had punched a window during the argument.

Paramedics treated Ms Abraham where she was seen to have “grazing and bruising to her chin consistent with a bite mark” along with bruising to her neck area.

Ms Nairn added: “The bruising on her neck spread down to her collar bone and there were imprints of his fingers around her neck.”

The fiscal also said Hannan had breached a court order banning him from approaching the woman when she turned up at his flat and stayed the night.

The fiscal said Ms Abraham was “found hiding in a cupboard” by police officers who had arrived at Hannan’s home during “a welfare check” on the woman.

Hannan admitted to assaulting Shannon Abraham by biting her to the face, seizing her by the neck, compressing her neck and restricting her breathing at an address in Dunbar, East Lothian, on January 11 last year.

He also pleaded guilty to breaching a court order on January 15 last year.

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