Edward Linse, 46, erupted with rage at partner Papapait when their child burst into tears during bath time at her £1.2million home in Nether Alderley, Cheshire
A businessman battered his Thai wife with their two-year-old daughter’s Peppa Pig book during a row over her UK visa.
Edward Linse, 46, erupted with rage at partner Papapait when their child burst into tears during bath time at his parents’ £1.2million home in the village of Nether Alderley, Cheshire.
Linse launched a tirade of abuse at his wife, calling her a ‘b****’ and hitting her repeatedly with a shoe before grabbing the book and hitting on the head with it.
Mrs Linse who is in her 30s was also grabbed by the neck and choked to the point where she claimed she couldn’t breathe for five seconds.
She was so scared she even agreed to slap herself in the face when told to do so by her husband.
The attack eventually ended when Mrs Linse broke free and begged neighbours for help.
When police arrived at the scene her husband retorted: ‘It was just a flimsy Peppa Pig book’.
Linse admitted assault by beating, but avoided jail at Stockport magistrates’ court.
He was handed a 12 month community order and will have to complete 100 hours unpaid work.
Linse was also made subject of a 12 month restraining order, stopping him from contacting his wife, except through a monitored email address, and was ordered to pay her £50 in compensation plus £335 court costs.
Mrs Linse (left, and right with her husband and daughter) was so scared she even agreed to slap herself in the face when told to do so by her husband
The court heard the couple had originally met whilst he was on holiday in Thailand, married in 2015 after a year long courtship and had two children together.
But after failing to set up a business togther in Thailand they couple decided to settle in England in August 2017 and moved in with Linse’s parents.
Their new life ran into difficulties when a mistake on an application form led to her being refused a visa allowing her to live in the UK. She was granted a temporary visa but it is due to expire next month.
Prosecutor Carl Myles said: ‘The incident happened on 12th October. During the day they had taken the children to nursery and then the both went into Manchester to sort out the problems his wife was having with her visa.
‘They returned home and were already quite stressed because of the situation. Mrs Linse was in the bath with her daughter when her daughter became upset and started crying.
‘Mrs Linse tried to calm her down by getting out of the bath, but was unable to and the defendant became infuriated.
Linse launched a tirade of abuse at his wife, calling her a ‘b****’ and hitting her repeatedly with a shoe before grabbing a Peppa Pig book and hitting on the head with it
‘He kicked the bathroom door and shouted at her calling her a b****. He became angry due to an argument from the night before. He put his forehead to hers and pushed hard then pushed her so she fell to the floor.
‘He then hit her over the head with a shoe four times. She was so scared that when he told her to slap herself, she did.
‘He picked up a book and hit her on the head with it then through it at her. He then pushed her against the wall and grabbed her by the throat, strangling her so she couldn’t breathe for four to five seconds.
‘He then forced her to apologise. The defendant then heard the other child calling for her so went to find him. The complainant then used this as an opportunity to leave the house and go to the neighbours, who had witnessed her crying.
‘This witness said she seemed distressed, and her face was red and blotchy. The defendant was stood outside the house waiting for her holding the youngest of their children, which only gave the wife more reason to fear him.
‘The wife told the neighbours that her husband had hit her and that she was afraid so the police were called.
‘When they reached his address, his parents house, he commented that he only hit her ‘with a flimsy Peppa Pig book’. Whilst there have been no domestic call outs from the police in the past, Mrs Linse has told me that he has pushed her before and hit her.
‘In interview he explained that he had ‘had it up to here’ and gestured with his hand above his head. He admitted he kicked the bathroom door when he gets angry, but he also explained that they both throw objects, like crockery, when they are angry.
‘He also stated that he was being ‘flippant’ when he made the joke about the Peppa Pig book. He stated that he had had enough of ‘it’, alluding to the arguments with his wife.
Linse (pictured, outside court) admitted assault by beating but avoided jail and was ordered to carry out unpaid work
‘The defendant has no previous convictions and there have been no reported call outs to the police for domestic matters before. Whilst there was no serious injury caused, this will most definitely have more of a psychological effect on her.’
In mitigation, Linse’s lawyer Peter Malone said: ‘Initially he did enter not guilty pleas, but he now accepts his actions. They have two children aged one and two. Her visa was refused so they have had to go through the judiciary and appeal the decision for the refusal.
‘This has created an immense amount of stress on the defendant and his family. On that day they had been trying to sort out her visa issues in Manchester, but had been arguing. Then they got back, she got in the bath, he had two screaming children to manage and he became angry.
‘He does accept he was responsible for the red mark on her breast bone.’
Mr Malone added: ‘He went to a boarding school and found that he struggled whilst he was there and he couldn’t properly deal with his emotions. That has led to this sort of his behaviour and he is willing to accept help and support from the probation service.
‘His wife and himself wanted to start a business together, but struggled to do so whilst in Thailand. They decided to move over to England to try again. This proved to be difficult as his wife was refused a visa following a mistake made on her application.
‘Following the incident she now lives in sheltered accommodation. He hasn’t spoken to her because of his bail. His children have dual nationality so once these proceedings are over, they will have to sort something out for them. It’s a possibility his wife may have to return to Thailand, which would, of course, be heartbreaking for the whole family.
‘They have tried to appeal the refusal, but this has meant numerous court appearances and has put a lot of stress on family life, and Mr Linse accepts that he has struggled to cope emotionally. He accepts he does kick the bathroom door and throw objects when he is angry.’
Mrs Linse, who is originally from Chiang Mai in Thailand, is now living in a council run property with the children whilst she fights a legal battle to remain in Britain.
She has also written an online SOS about the incident on the Go Fund Me website asking for £100,000 in donations and saying: ‘I am now on a Visit Visa in with my children being homeless in the UK with no money and no other better choices as human rights and mother’s rights should have.
‘I was physically and verbally abused and threatened by the father of my children. We still have to live in fear and being stressful and unsafe most of the time. I truly need financial help and support very urgently. I have no money to support myself with two small children right now.’