A man flew into a rage and smashed his ex-wife's new X-type Jaguar after they had a row and because he believed she had parked it on his drive to provoke him, a court heard yesterday.

A man flew into a rage and smashed his ex-wife's new X-type Jaguar after they had a row and because he believed she had parked it on his

drive to provoke him, a court heard yesterday.

Brett Mullane, 42, pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to a charge of assault, criminal damage and causing damage to a police cell and having no car insurance.

He reappeared before King's Lynn magistrates yesterday and was told he could face prison.

A Newton hearing was held because the prosecution and defence disputed whether Mullane, of Leete Way, West Winch, had punched his ex-wife Rosylee and slammed the car boot on her back during the incident on

June 29.

Magistrates said that because they were unable to say for sure whose account was right, they had to give the benefit of the doubt to him and find

in favour of the defendant's version of events.

Mullane claimed he felt his ex-wife had parked the new car on the drive

to provoke him as he was having financial troubles.

He said he wanted to talk to her about child care arrangements but admitted he became angry at her and physically tried to move her off the property before smashing her vehicle with a paving slab.

Susanna Chowdhury, prosecuting, said Rosylee Mullane, 41, from Wymondham, had gone to his house to drop off the children for a weekend visit.

She told the court Ms Mullane did not think her husband was home and drove her car onto the drive to turn it around.

She said Ms Mullane, a freelance dental nurse who runs a nursing agency, said the defendant came raging out of the house and punched her in the chest. Then, as she tried to get her phone out of the car, Mullane slammed the boot down on her back. He then got a concrete slab and hit the car with it, smashing the side windows, windscreen and bonnet.

Ms Mullane took refuge at a neighbour's house. Giving evidence, she said: “He said to me, 'what are you doing here, what are doing parked on my drive?' He then confronted me and punched me, pushing me backwards. I was very distraught by this and extremely shocked.”

The court was told the couple married in 1995 and were together for three years, but divorced in 2003.

Hugh Cauthery, for Mullan, said she parked the car on the drive because she knew the defendant had financial troubles and she wanted to show it off and “rub his nose in it.”

He said his ex-wife said: “Don't touch what you can't afford” and kept repeating it.

He denied Mullane punched his ex-wife and said he had pleaded guilty to assault because he had tried to move her away from the vehicle and she had fallen over. He did not slam the car boot on her back.

Witness Gary Machin gave a similar account of the incident as Mullane and said all he saw was Ms Mullane opening the car doors and boot and Mullane following her and shutting them. He did not witness an assault or Mullane slamming the boot down on his ex-wife.

He did, however, see Mullane smashing the car and said: “The gentleman 'trashed' it in my words - virtually every panel. I've never seen a car destroyed like it.”

The case was adjourned for pre-sentence reports