A THUG who terrified a mother by threatening to rape her daughter and burn her house down has been jailed.

Robert Burns also threw a television into her garden before he tried to assault the woman by throwing punches at her.

And when arrested and being taken into custody he spat at two policemen and put one of them into a headlock at Newport Central police station.

Burns, 42, from Pontypool, was made the subject of a restraining order preventing him from contacting the woman after a conviction earlier this year.

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William Bebb, prosecuting, said he soon broke that court order after banging on and causing criminal damage to her front door.

The woman’s daughter pressed herself against the door to prevent him coming in and called her mother for help.

Not long after, the incident in the garden took place.

Mr Bebb said: “The defendant was shouting at the woman, ‘I’m going to burn your house down.’”

Newport Crown Court heard how he then made the threat to rape her daughter.

The defendant also threw dumbbells, ashtrays and coffee jars into their garden and “laughed and smirked at her”.

Mr Bebb added: “When he was taken into custody, he told one of the police officers in Newport, ‘I’m going to kill you.’

“He got him in a headlock and started to put pressure on his neck with the officer struggling to breathe.

“The victim got him off by striking him twice to the face.”

Burns admitted harassment, breach of a restraining order, criminal damage and assault of an emergency worker.

The court was told the defendant had four previous convictions for five offences, including battery and public disorder.

Hilary Roberts, representing Burns, asked for his client to be given credit for his early guilty pleas.

His barrister said the defendant was a “troubled person”.

Mr Roberts told the court how he suffered from drug-induced psychosis and heard voices.

Judge Daniel Williams told Burns: “You threatened to burn the woman’s house down and rape her child.

“You swung punches at her, spat at police officers and placed one in a headlock.”

He jailed the defendant for 12 months.