A SELF-CONFESSED woman beater who repeatedly assaulted a teenager has avoided jail.

Connor Lewarne, 21, started shouting at the victim - who he knew - close to Walton Pier in December and then yanked at her hair, pulling out her hair extensions and threatened to cause damage to her mother's house.

They walked to the house and he threw a stone at a car, they then returned to the pier and continued to row and he punched the girl in the stomach.

A few days later, in January, Lewarne confronted her again at a friend’s address, threatening the friends and launching five kicks at her front door.

Lewarne, of Walton Road, Walton, later threatened the girl on the phone saying he would smash her head in and soon afterwards arrived where she was and kicked in the door to her home.

After one attack, Lewarne sent messages to the victim acknowledging what he had done.

During a hearing at Colchester Magistrates' Court, Lucy Miller, prosecuting said: "She sent him some text messages saying her legs hurt.

"He apologised and she replied saying he shouldn't do it in the first place.

"He then replied, 'I know' and she said 'you do it all the time.'

"He said ' I know, I'm a girl beater.'"

Lewarne had admitted three counts of assault by beating, one count of using threatening words or behaviour, two counts of using violence to secure entry to a premises and one count of causing criminal damage.

He told probation officers he did not mean the threats he made but struggled to explain why he had been violent.

Peter Young, mitigating said: "He it totally ashamed of his behaviour and is very sorry.

"This was a period of about ten days and he finds it difficult to talk about his behaviour during that time.

"He was in a bad place at the time - the couple who have looked after him had split up and he was no longer living with either of them.

"He had learned both of his birth parents had died before Christmas and he was upset he had not managed to establish more contact with them."

Magistrates handed Lewarne a two-year community order where he must complete 100 hours of unpaid work, 20 rehabilitation activity requirement days and the Building Better Relationships programme.

He must pay £200 compensation to the assault victim, and £200 to a woman whose door he smashed.

Lewarne was also given a restraining order banning him from contacting any of the victims, going to their homes and a business one runs on Walton High Street.