Domestic abuser who threw axe at partner sentenced

A man who strangled a woman, put a pillow over her face and repeatedly threatened to harm members of her family over a 10-month period has been sentenced.

Alexander Kennedy subjected his then partner to several assaults, including one with vodka bottle, between September 2023 and August 2024.

Douglas Courthouse heard on one occasion the 52-year-old had thrown an axe he kept next to a log burner in his living room at the wall above her head.

Kennedy was handed a 22-month sentence, suspended for two years, with a supervision order covering the same period.

He was also placed on extended licence for an additional two years.

The court heard although the 18-month relationship had been good in its early stages, by May 2023 he had begun to show "sinister behaviour" accusing her of infidelity and lies.

On one occasion when the couple were attending an event at the Villa Marina in Douglas Kennedy reacted angrily when he saw her talking to a group of other people.

In the car on the way home he at first told the woman he was suicidal before saying he would kill her while "grinding his teeth from anger".

Prosecutors said Kennedy had also told the woman, who was 17 years younger than him, that she was not to spend time with her family and while she could go for walks with the friends, she was not to go into their homes.

Later the same year, he threw the axe at her while she sat on the sofa before smashing a table by flipping it over, locking the door and refusing to let her leave until she had cleared up the mess he had made.

The abuse continued through a string of 35 incidents, culminating on 6 August 2024 when he became angry about an old photograph on one of her friend's social media accounts.

During the attack he grabbed her phone and punched her in the head before making her apologise 30 times.

He went on to threaten to rape her and abuse her children before telling her: "Tell anyone I've grabbed you and I'll kill your brother and your dad."

The friend, whom she had phoned to ask to delete the photo, overheard part of the abuse and called the police.

In a victim impact statement read to the court, she said although the physical injuries may have healed, the mental trauma was still there.

She had gone on to suffer from insomnia and flashbacks, and no longer felt able to trust any man, she added.

Kennedy's defence advocate said the lateness of his guilty plea to the domestic abuse charge – which was entered in September this year – had been down to his mental health and he was now an "entirely different person".

Following a breakdown in December last year, he had "gone from a Jekyll and Hyde character to someone more stable", the advocate added.

Handing down the sentence, Deemster Graeme Cook said it was a very serious case, but it was clear Kennedy had had mental health problems.

Deemster Cook said his behaviour had been appalling, adding: "Every single person is entitled to have their own life… without interference from other people."

Making him subject to a domestic abuse protection order indefinitely, banning him from contacting or approaching the victim, he told him: "She doesn't want anything to do with you."

Kennedy was also sentenced for resisting arrest after escaping police who had confronted him while he was behaving threateningly towards the occupants of a car on Douglas Promenade on 9 July 2025.

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