A dad-to-be who took part in a savage beating of a woman tried to use his unborn child to avoid going straight to prison.

Zubair Butt's partner, Shyanne Porter, had been spared for her part in the revenge attack.

Porter, 22, of Chatham, wept in the dock as she watched her lover led away at Maidstone Crown Court to begin his sentence.

It was then Butt turned to the judge and begged: "I've got a child on the way. Is there nothing you can do?"

But the crown court recorder ignored his plea after earlier telling him that such "savage" violence against young women would not be tolerated.

Butt, of Gordon Road, Gillingham, and Porter had repeatedly punched and kicked their victim as she walked alone in Luton Road, Chatham, on February 26, 2019.

The victim was knocked unconscious and woke up in King's College Hospital in London with no memory of the unprovoked attack.

The court heard how her injuries included bruising, cuts, abrasions and a gold tooth was knocked out.

But prosecutor Tom Dunn said she was left petrified and when she saw Butt two weeks later, wet herself in fear.

Porter and Butt, 25, later admitted assault causing actual bodily harm.

On the day of the attack Porter was on her way to an appointment with the Prince's Trust to secure funding to help set up an upcycling furniture business.

But when the couple spotted their victim walking alone the morning after they had had a minor bust-up in a local KFC restaurant they wanted revenge.

Mr Dunn said the duo parked their car ahead of her and lay in wait behind a wall.

One motorist later described seeing the victim being struck with a shoe or slipper, as her attackers shouted at nearby drivers "**** off, go now" and "Mind your own ****ing business. Drive!"

The prosecutor added: "She was being beaten by both defendants. She was on the floor and received at least 10 blows.

"The female was punching and kicking, the male was beating her around the head with an item in his hand, believed by one witness to be either a shoe or slipper.

"They continued to punch and kick the victim in the floor at least another 10 times between them as she did nothing to protect herself in any way.

"The witness said the incident had a lasting memory for him, given it was very gratuitous and violent, and they had no regard for their victim's life."

Butt and Porter eventually fled but Porter later contacted police to say she had been involved after seeing an appeal for information on Facebook.

The court heard the victim now felt "violated, unsafe, and always on edge", with her anxiety "through the roof".

"She asks herself 'If I can't defend myself in broad daylight, when can I?'," added the prosecutor.

Porter is due to give birth in March.

"The male was beating her around the head with an item in his hand, believed by one witness to be either a shoe or slipper..."

As well seeking financial help from The Prince's Trust, the court heard Porter had landed a job as a chef through the government-backed Kickstart programme.

She was handed a 16-month jail term suspended for 18 months after Recorder Edward Butler said immediate custody would have an "unjustifiably harmful impact" on her unborn child.

Butt was jailed for two years.

Porter was ordered to undertake 30 rehabilitation activity sessions and pay her victim £235 in compensation within six months.

But he told both: "You both committed a savage assault on your victim....Whatever had happened the day before and whatever the perceived slight, it does not come close to justifying what you both did.

"Perhaps mercifully, your victim has no memory of it whatsoever, but what followed was an episode of gratuitous violence against a defenceless young woman."

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