Air rage millionaire is back in court for beating up his wife - who was so scared of him she barricaded herself into her bedroom
- Darren Halliwell admitted assaulting his wife months after air-rage incident
- Halliwell had been accused of hitting wife on British Airways flight in July
- He was eventually allowed home after posting bail and case later dropped
- But Halliwell has been handed a three-year restraining order months later
Darren Halliwell, 48, admitted assaulting his wife after returning from the pub on September 2. It happened just months after he allegedly hit her during a drunken rampage on a British Airways flight
A millionaire who allegedly hit his wife during a drunken rampage on a transatlantic flight has found himself back in court again after attacking her at home when he suspected she was having an affair.
Darren Halliwell, 48, forced a British Airways flight to divert when he allegedly screamed at staff and urinated on the seats after being accused of hitting wife Sharon in the face.
He was eventually allowed home after posting a hefty bail following his outburst on July 8 but ended up back in the dock again just months later.
Halliwell admitted assaulting his wife after returning from the pub on September 2. He had wrongly thought she had a man in her bedroom, magistrates were told.
Wigan and Leigh Magistrates' Court heard how despite agreeing to sleep in separate parts of their house, Mrs Halliwell felt compelled to barricade her door each night with linen boxes to stop her aggressive husband getting in.
When he returned home from a night out earlier this month, the IT tycoon began banging on her bedroom door, ranting that she was sleeping with someone else, the court was told.
Prosecutor Katie Beattie told magistrates that it must have been a 'figment of his imagination'.
She claimed Mrs Halliwell eventually allowed him in the room to prove she was alone but he grabbed the back of her neck and pushed her onto the bed and began choking her.
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Ms Beattie said: 'It lasted a couple of seconds, it was difficult for her to breathe and it was painful.
'She said to him "Darren leave me, let me get away you’re going to kill me", and he replied "good".'
The court heard Mrs Halliwell eventually wriggled free from her husband's grasp and crawled towards the door, but he followed and pulled her out of the room by her hair and began dragging her down the stairs.
She fled the property before realising she had forgotten her car keys and went back into the house where she was confronted by Halliwell.
He grabbed her by her left foot and began dragging her back out of the room and down the stairs, the court heard.
The assault on September 2 happened at the couple’s £650,000 marital home in Aspull, Greater Manchester (pictured). Halliwell has been handed a three-year restraining order and told not to go back to the family home
Ms Beattie said: 'But he was drunk and he stumbled into her. And at a turn in the stairs she managed to bolt free and ran to her car where she locked herself in.'
Magistrates were told how Halliwell went after his wife and began punching and headbutting the window of the car before picking up a plant pot.
Mrs Halliwell managed to drive off to a nearby pub to wait for police to arrive.
Ms Beattie added that Mrs Halliwell suffered soreness on her left knee, neck, throat and head and also thought her lip was cut.
Halliwell previously faced jail following his mid-air outburst when it is believed he also tried to assault wife Sharron on board.
The flight, which had been destined to land in Houston, was forced to re-route to Boston’s Logan International Outburst so Halliwell could be arrested.
Halliwell forced a British Airways flight to divert when he allegedly screamed at staff and urinated on the seats after being accused of hitting wife Sharon in the face
He was granted bail at the sum of £3,250, allowing him to return to the couple’s £650,000 marital home in Aspull, Greater Manchester.
The case against him was later dropped on the grounds he did not return to the US after being deported.
However after returning to court, Martin Jones, defending him, said: 'My client has little or no recollection of the events from the night.'
Halliwell, now of Scholes, Greater Manchester, was sentenced to a 12-month community order with a rehabilitation activity and 120 hours community service.
He was also ordered to pay £150 court charges, a £60 victim surcharge, £85 costs and £200 compensation to his wife.
Halliwell, who has two grown-up daughters with his wife, was also handed a three-year restraining order and told not to go back to the family home.
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