A 34-YEAR-OLD man who stabbed his partner twice with a knife in the space of three months has been warned he faces a prison sentence at Jedburgh Sheriff Court.

Paul Holmes pleaded guilty to striking a woman with a knife to her severe injury and permanent disfigurement on December 22 at a house in Trinity Street, Hawick.

He also admitted striking her on the face and body with the knife on March 31 again to her severe injury and permanent disfigurement.

Miriam Clark, prosecuting, said the jobless 34-year-old had three previous convictions for assault to injury, assault and threatening or abusive behaviour in Scotland as well as previous convictions in England. She added he had served two periods of custody in 2010 and 2018.

The court was told Ms Steel's former husband and daughter came to stay with the couple in Hawick on December 22.

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A dispute broke out regarding a trivial matter and after the ex-husband went to the toilet, Holmes approached his partner and she felt something hard strike her on the top of the head and felt

excruciating pain.

Ms Clark continued:"She put her hand on her head and felt she was bleeding. She saw the accused standing there with a knife.

"At first she thought she had been punched and then said 'what the f***' but he did not reply."

The court heard she went to a neighbour's house who helped her to clear up the wound which was four or five inches long on her head.

But the partner urged the neighbour not to call the police as she did not want to get Holmes into trouble.

However on March 31 the couple were within their home at about 6.30pm when an argument developed and he began to punch Ms Steel to the face and body several times.

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Ms Clark said: "Again she thought she had been punched but on inspection realised she had been stabbed. She feared for her life and left the house."

The partner went to another neighbour's house and told him: "Paul has stabbed me again."

The neighbour dialled 999 and saw her covered in blood with a laceration on her face.

Police officers arrived and Holmes admitted he had stabbed her with a small kitchen knife which he had cleaned and put back from where he got it.

He said he had not meant to stab her but had moved his right hand forward and caught her.

He claimed "she had been doing my head in" and "nagging at him".

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Ms Steel was taken to Borders General Hospital; where she was treated for a puncture wound on her body and a 1.5cm cut on her face.

Sentence was deferred until August for background reports and Holmes was remanded in custody.

Sheriff Peter Paterson told him: "A prison sentence is going to happen. It is just a question of how long."