Faavae Vaiotu, 30, of Minerva Drive, pleaded guilty in the Warrnambool Magistrates Court this week to two counts of recklessly causing injury and four breaches of an intervention order.

Police said Mr Vaiotu and his former partner had been in a relationship for three years and now had two sons.

In November last year Mr Vaiotu was high on crystal methamphetamine and alcohol. He had been acting strangely and was aggressive.

One night he asked his partner why she was walking away from him and grabbed her by the hair, shaking her so she hit her head on a bath.

She was seven months pregnant at the time and tried to cover her belly to protect her unborn baby.

The next day she noticed clumps of her hair had been pulled out where she had been shaken.

On August 24 this year Mr Vaiotu approached the same woman and asked why she was ringing his friends.

He swore at her and when she walked away from him holding a baby he punched her to the back of the head.

An intervention order was put in place the next day but Mr Vaiotu breached the order by sending text messages and trying to ring the woman.

Defence counsel Xavier Farrelly said alcohol was a factor in his client’s poor decision making and the solicitor requested Vaiotu get help through a CCO.

Magistrate John Lesser said it was clear that Vaiotu’s behaviour had a huge impact on his relationship.

He told the defendant he had to rethink how he interacted with his former partner and he needed to correct his behaviour.

The magistrate said it was important that Mr Vaiotu did not come back to court charged with similar offending as he would risk receiving a custodial sentence.

Mr Vaiotu was not convicted, placed on a 12-month CCO with the conditions he complete 100 hours of community work, do assessment and treatment for drugs and alcohol and programs such as a men’s behavioural change course.