Pregnant woman punched in stomach just four weeks before due date

Gustasub Khan waged a campaign of abuse against Zahira Bibi and her husband, Yadgar Omar, which culminated in the attack in June.

During the encounter in Dunstall Road, Whitmore Reans, Wolverhampton, Khan also smashed Mr Omar over his head with a bottle.

At Wolverhampton Crown Court this week the 29-year-old was jailed for 12 months having been convicted of a string of offences by magistrates.

Prosecuting, Miss Fiona Cortese, told the court Khan had not accepted Mrs Bibi's marriage to Mr Omar and was subject to a restraining order when he carried out the assaults on June 24.

He encountered the couple by chance when he saw them driving in the road in which he lived but then forced them to stop by striking the roof with a car charger.

Khan, with the aid of two other men, dragged Mr Omar from his car and threatened to "smash him in."

"The defendant has hit Mr Omar to his face with a bottle. He has then swung the bottle again, hitting Mr Omar a second time knocking him to the ground.

"Mrs Bibi has tried to pull the defendant away and he has then hit her to the stomach. She hit her face on a car as she fell back."

Two days later Khan was seen by Mr Omar driving outside their home in Probert Road, Oxley. The court heard he did the same on July 3.

Miss Cortese said Khan was banned from entering the road under the conditions of his restraining order.

He was arrested on July 8 but failed to appear at Dudley Magistrates Court when required.

He was convicted in his absence on two counts of assault by beating, breaching a restraining order, driving while disqualified, driving without insurance and failing to surrender to custody.

In a victim impact statement read to the court, Mrs Bibi said her cousin had been abusing her for three years and she no longer felt safe.

Defending, Mr David Isles, said there had been ill-will on "both sides" and his client "greatly regretted" carrying out the attack.

But Judge Marcus Tregilgas-Davey slammed his behaviour when passing sentence.

He said: "You felt by not going through with an arranged marriage that in some way your cousin had brought shame on the family. You were utterly misguided in that line of thinking.

"You were violent in front of a child, against his parents, and the incident simply can't be viewed in isolation.

"It was part of a campaign you had been waging against this entirely innocent family."