An escaped prisoner who punched, kicked and spat at his former partner while at large has been jailed for three years.

‘Career criminal’ John Elliott walked out of HMP Hatfield to attend his father’s funeral and wasn’t arrested for eight months, Bradford Crown Court heard today.

Elliott, 41, whose address is now HMP Leeds after he was recalled to serve the balance of a three-year sentence for house burglary, attacked the woman three times in the space of five days.

He pleaded guilty to escaping from lawful custody on October 11, 2020, and to three offences of assault occasioning actual bodily harm between June 12 and 16 last year.

Prosecutor Timothy Jacobs said Elliott left the open prison after being refused permis-sion to attend the funeral because of Covid restrictions.

He was offered a video link to the service but he was determined to be there in person.

While at large he went to stay at the woman’s home in Bradford, Mr Jacobs said. She had misgivings but agreed to take him in.

On June 12, he attacked her during an argument about money, pushing her over and punching her up to six times before putting his hand round her throat and then kicking and stamping on her.

A woman in the flat with them said: “Please stop, you’re going to kill her.”

The victim sustained a black eye and bruised arms, Mr Jacobs said.

Elliott then returned uninvited twice to her home to assault her again.

The next day he spat at her, grabbed her and pulled out clumps of her hair.

The final attack came after he let himself into her home and punched her in the face injuring her lip when she tried to stop him climbing out the window.

When arrested, Elliott claimed that someone else had attacked her, maintaining his not guilty pleas until the day of his trial.

Ken Green said in mitigation that Elliott was “a career criminal” who had spent most of his adult life behind bars but not for offences of violence.

He left the open prison after first being allowed to attend the funeral and then refused permission.

Mr Green conceded that he should have handed himself in after the funeral instead of remaining at large.

Recorder Simon Eckersley jailed Elliott for 32 months for the assaults with four months to run consecutively for escape.

He made a five-year restraining order to protect the woman from him in the future.