Patrick Gavin, 44, of Hopetoun Road, pleaded guilty in Warrnambool Magistrates Court yesterday to again breaching one of the court-imposed orders.

He was jailed for three months and seven days and will have to complete a community corrections order (CCO) on release from prison.

The CCO will include conditions he complete 120 hours’ community work and do assessment, treatment and programs for alcohol and drug use.

He will also have to return to court on February 16 for judicial monitoring. 

Gavin has an extensive criminal history and the most recent offending breached a three-month suspended sentence imposed in April this year, which made up the bulk of his new penalty. 

He had already spent 24 days in custody.

Police told the court Gavin and a woman were previously in a relationship and an intervention order was in place preventing him from contacting her.

Early last month the woman allowed him to stay at her home because she had security concerns but after a couple of days he refused to leave.

At 12.30am on September 13 the woman woke up on a couch and found Gavin asking her a question. 

He started yelling at her, lifted up a table and threw things around.

Gavin then grabbed the woman by the hair and dragged her to ground but walked out when she hithim with an ash tray. 

Police were called and noticed the woman had a cut thumb. She also complained of soreness to her head because of her hair being pulled.

Officers went to Gavin’s home and arrested him. His mother said he had been away for five days and returned only 15 minutes before police arrived.

The woman also told police Gavin had posted derogatory comments on Facebook about her, and on another occasion had got out of her shower to find Gavin in her home soon after he was released from jail.

There have been six reported incidents between Gavin and the woman since December 2012, the most serious allegedly involved him putting his knee on her chest and choking her with both hands.