A MAN who threatened his ex-girlfriend with a Stanley knife and told her he would cut up her clothes went on to harass her for months.

Morgan Green, 24, from Risca bombarded the woman with threatening text and voice mail messages, prosecutor Jac Brown said.

The defendant pleaded guilty to threatening a person with a bladed article in a private place, harassment and an offence under the Malicious Communications Act 1988.

The offences occurred between November last year and May, Cardiff Crown Court was told.

He had five previous convictions for 10 offences, with nine of those being for driving offences.

Green was a hard-working man, his barrister Richard Ace said in mitigation.

Judge Shomon Khan told the defendant: “You held a Stanley knife in your hands with the blade out.

“When you had that knife in your hand you said words to the effect that you were going to cut up her clothes.

“The victim’s mother had to take the knife from you and the row continued.

“Your behaviour and your harassment continued over a period of months.

“I've spent some time this morning listening to those messages and a number of them show real immaturity on your part.”

Green, of Mountain Road, was told that his offending crossed the custody threshold.

Judge Khan said to him: “The question for this court is do I make it immediate imprisonment or do I suspend it?

“You can see the argument, can't you, that of holding a knife up in your former partner's home, the place where she's meant to feel safe?

“It is so serious that the only appropriate sentence is immediate imprisonment and that was very much in the forefront of my mind this morning.

“But Mr Ace makes the point, and a very fair point, that if I impose a sentence of 10 months today, you'll be out in five months.”

The judge said “very little is going to be achieved” if he did that.

Green was jailed for 10 months but the sentence was suspended for two years.

The defendant will have to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work, complete 30 sessions of a “Building Better Relationships” programme and a 20-day rehabilitation activity requirement.

He is also prohibited from contacting his victim for five years after a restraining order was imposed against him.