Violent Edinburgh thug slashed and punched his partner

A violent thug who battered and stabbed his partner during an argument is facing a lengthy jail sentence.

Thug Thomson faces prison after his case was heard at Edinburgh Sheriff Court

Gary Thomson was said to have “exploded” in anger at girlfriend Dawn Cullen by punching and slashing her with a kitchen knife at her Edinburgh home last year.

Thomson, 27, repeatedly punched the woman to the head and body leaving her with a bloodied lip before cutting her on the body with the large blade.

The row spilled out on to a nearby street where cowardly Thomson then head-butted a woman after she had intervened in a bid to help Ms Cullen from a further beating.

Thomson appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff Court via video link from Saughton Prison and admitted the two brutal assaults on the women.

Fiscal depute Anna Robertson told the court the couple were at Ms Cullen’s home in the Murrayburn area of the capital at around 8.30pm on August 11 last year.

The fiscal said an argument developed between the pair and Thomson “exploded and punched her above the left eye with a closed fist”.

The bust up continued throughout the evening and around 11pm Thomson lashed out again when he “struck her to the body with a knife resulting in a cut about six inches long”

Thomson and injured woman then left the property and he was spotted attacking her again at a nearby street by “punching Ms Cullen on the head”.

The thug continued to beat his partner by throwing further punches to her face which resulted in the woman suffering a burst lip.

Shocked passer-by Lee-Ann Leonard witnessed the savage attack attempted to help Ms Cullen but she was also left bloodied after being assaulted by Thomson.

Ms Robertson said: “She [Ms Leonard] asked if Ms Cullen was OK and the accused has taken issue with this and head-butted her.

“This has caused a two-centimetre laceration to her right eye and she stumbled back and the wound above her eye started to bleed.”

Police were called and Ms Leonard was taken to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary for treatment by accident and emergency medics.

Lawyer Matthew Nicholson, defending, said his client had issues with drugs and alcohol that had led to the assaults but said he would reserve his full mitigation to the sentencing hearing.

Mr Nicholson did add: “He was misusing Valium and alcohol and does not have a good recollection as to what happened.”

Sheriff Douglas Keir remanded Thomson in custody in HMP Edinburgh and deferred sentence for background and social work reports to next month.

Thomson pleaded guilty to assaulting Dawn Cullen by repeatedly punching her to the head and striking her to the body with a knife to her severe injury at several locations in Murrayburn, Edinburgh on August 11 last year.

He also admitted to assaulting Lee-Ann Leonard by butting her to the head to her injury to at Calder Road, Edinburgh, on the same date.

He also admitted to a third charge of breaching bail conditions by contacting Ms Cullen in December last year.

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by coronavirus impacts our advertisers.

If you haven't already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription..