Twisted Shaquille McDonald told Amy Beckley “I’m going to make you sleep” after he found her chatting to a bouncer she knew.
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Hard-to-watch CCTV shows how McDonald, 28, launched at Amy, pinning her up against a wall by her neck in her own flat.
The sicko then drags her to the floor during the assault before repeatedly throttling her on a bed.
Amy said she had only been going out with the abuser for six weeks before the viscous attack in Birmingham this year.
During that time she said the former Derby County and Birmingham City footballer “love bombed” her with gifts and affection.
But on March 3, the pair were on a night out at the Arcadian nightclub when McDonald flew into a jealous rage.
He snatched Amy’s phone and keys calling her a “liar and a b****” for speaking to a bouncer she knew through her work in the fire brigade.
Twisted McDonald then put Amy in a headlock and forced her into a taxi.
He bit her face, scratched and slapped her on the way home.
Once back at her flat in the early hours of the morning, McDonald continued beating Amy and grabbing her by the throat as the attack escalated.
Amy told BirminghamLive: “He then came out and grabbed my phone and grabbed me by the throat and dragged me in to the flat.
“He smashed my head into a concrete wall. That’s when I fell to the floor.”
Amy was then thrown onto a bed and strangled to the point of losing consciousness.
How you can get help
Women’s Aid has this advice for victims and their families:
- Always keep your phone nearby.
- Get in touch with charities for help, including the Women’s Aid live chat helpline and services such as SupportLine.
- If you are in danger, call 999.
- Familiarise yourself with the Silent Solution, reporting abuse without speaking down the phone, instead dialing “55”.
- Always keep some money on you, including change for a pay phone or bus fare.
- If you suspect your partner is about to attack you, try to go to a lower-risk area of the house – for example, where there is a way out and access to a telephone.
- Avoid the kitchen and garage, where there are likely to be knives or other weapons. Avoid rooms where you might become trapped, such as the bathroom, or where you might be shut into a cupboard or other small space.
If you are a victim of domestic abuse, SupportLine is open Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 6pm to 8pm on 01708 765200. The charity’s email support service is open weekdays and weekends during the crisis – messageinfo@supportline.org.uk.
Women’s Aid provides a live chat service – available weekdays from 8am-6pm and weekends 10am-6pm.
You can also call the freephone 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.
McDonald stopped, before doing it again for longer, and screaming: “I’m going to put you to sleep, there’s nothing you can do about it.”
Recalling the horror, Amy added: “I had four attempts trying to get my breath.
“I managed to get one of my feet free and used it to manoeuvre us onto the floor.
“I then screamed my son’s name, got up and ran.”
Terrified he would kill her, she threw herself off the balcony, landing on a neighbour’s terrace below who then helped her.
When police arrived on the scene, pathetic McDonald was heard saying “I’m f*****”.
The coward then tried to run away from cops, Birmingham Crown Court was told.
The court heard how Amy, then 29, received “a number of significant injuries” as a result of the attack.
These included two fractured elbows, facial injuries and injuries to her arms and legs as a result of the attack and fall.
In court, it was revealed that McDonald – who had languished in English football’s eighth tier with non-league Mickleover F.C. – was fined in 2017 for a similar attack on a former girlfriend.
Sentencing him, Judge John Butterfield KC told evil McDonald: “You badly need a root and branch re-examination of your attitude to females and your atrocious jealousy.”
McDonald was jailed for two years and eight months on October 20 after admitting to actual bodily harm and strangulation.
Since the attack, Amy has been unable to go back to work in the fire service and move out of her flat because of the terrifying memories.
She added: “‘I will have to live with this forever. It’s really made me wary of everybody, especially men.
“It’s damaged my trust and completely knocked my self-confidence.”
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