Briton gets six year sentence

A 47-year-old Briton was yesterday sentenced to serve six years in jail after pleading guilty to attempted manslaughter. The Briton, identified as Richard Smith, appeared in court yesterday accused of trying to slit the throat of his ex-girlfriend in a dark and deserted Magalluf hotel car park last May. Sources close to the case revealed yesterday that the suspect has a criminal record in the United Kingdom. He yesterday admitted to attacking his ex-girlfriend from behind after finding her alone in the car park allegedly with the intention of cutting her throat with a broken bottle. The victim, whose life was saved by a passerby, spent 60 days in hospital but she still has scars on her face and back. During the case, the prosecution accepted that the suspect acted under the influence of alcohol, hence the charges were reduced from attempted murder, which carries a maximum sentence of 11 years, to attempted manslaughter. ccording to court sources, the accused had already had a five-year restraining order served on him, keeping him away from the victim but on returning to Majorca after having completed a prison sentence in the United Kingdom, his ex-girlfriend apparently agreed to give him a place to stay for a few days. The prosecution claimed that the couple got back together again, but she eventually wanted an end to the relationship, which Richard Smith apparently refused to accept. So, drunk, he apparently attacked her after bumping into her in the Magalluf car park on the night in question. She suffered serious wounds. Smith was last night behind bars at Palma prison on the outskirts of the city.