Shocking photos show burn injuries suffered by woman, 47, after thug, 43, threw kettle of boiling water over her as he is jailed for 16 years
- WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT
- Michael Fitzgerald, 43, threw a kettle of boiling water over the woman, 47
- He also stabbed her with a screwdriver during the violent attack in August 2020
- Fitzgerald was today jailed for 16 years from Manchester Crown Court
Michael Fitzgerald (pictured), 43, also stabbed the woman, 47, with a screwdriver
A man who left a woman with life-changing injuries after throwing a kettle of boiling water over her has today been jailed for 16 years.
Michael Fitzgerald, 43, also stabbed the woman, 47, with a screwdriver in the sickening incident which left her with permanent scarring to her back in August last year.
He was jailed today at Manchester Crown Court after being found guilty in February of two counts of grievous bodily harm and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
Shocking pictures released after his sentencing reveal the extent of the damage done to the victim’s back and arm, which have been left badly burnt.
The victim needed skin grafts and has been left in constant pain since the ordeal.
The court heard that at around 10.30pm on August 10, 2020, cops were called by the ambulance service to a report of a domestic incident in Longsight.
Officers attended and found a woman in a neighbour’s garden with severe burns to her back and arm.
It was discovered that the woman had fled to the garden to hide from Fitzgerald and rang emergency services.
Officers immediately began to administer first aid and quizzed Fitzgerald, who denied any knowledge of how the injuries had been inflicted.
But the truth was Fitzgerald had stabbed the victim in the leg with a screwdriver three times and had then thrown boiling hot water from a kettle all over her back after a row.
Days earlier, he had also assaulted the same woman in the street when he punched and kicked her during an argument causing extensive bruising to her leg, the court heard.
He was later circulated as wanted and found by officers on August 18.
In a statement read in court, the victim said: ‘Never in a million years did I believe for one minute that Michael would do anything like this to me.
‘I can’t put into words the agonising pain I felt when the boiling water hit my body. It was the worst pain I have ever felt in my life.
Shocking images of the 47-year-old woman’s injuries were released after Fitzgerald was jailed for 16 years at Manchester Crown Court
The victim said she has been left in constant pain following the attack. She said she has ‘never felt so much discomfort’ in her life
The woman said: ‘At the moment I have no idea how long I will remain in pain – I can only hope it will improve in time’
‘I look at my back in the mirror and cry when I see what he has done to me. I will never be the same again.
‘I have never felt so much discomfort in all my life and some days I just don’t know how I am going to carry on.
‘At the moment I have no idea how long I will remain in pain – I can only hope it will improve in time.’
Detective Constable Annabel Lewis from Greater Manchester Police said after sentencing: ‘This was an absolutely horrific assault on a woman who has been left with life-changing injuries and shows the extent of domestic abuse that can occur behind closed doors.
‘The woman’s burns were so severe that she needed skin grafts.
‘This kind of violence will not be tolerated. Everyone has the right to go about their lives without the fear of being subjected to harm.
‘The victim’s bravery in this case has been outstanding since the beginning.
‘She has worked with us to ensure that Fitzgerald is brought to justice to also help protect other women from such horrific levels of violence and he will now spend the next 16 years behind bars thinking about his actions.’