Hero marksman spared jail for beating up his girlfriend

AN ARMY marksman who won the Military Cross for his bravery has been spared jail for battering his girlfriend after a sheriff heard his mental health had deteriorated "due to the strain of warfare".

Sniper commander Christopher Reynolds's achievements with the Black Watch in Helmand Province included killing 32 rebel soldiers.

He killed a Taleban warlord from nearly two kilometres - the longest fatal rifle shot recorded in the country.

Reynolds, 26, was one of four Black Watch soldiers presented with the MC by the Queen for courageous acts in Afghanistan, at a service in Edinburgh in July last year.

It was awarded for his services as a corporal with the battalion while in the Babaji district of Helmand from April to September 2009.

But Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court heard yesterday that just a month before receiving the award, the father of one had assaulted his then girlfriend, Catherine Aitken, at the home they shared in the town.

Ms Aitken had told Reynolds she was becoming more and more concerned about his violent temper, and this started an argument.

He then moved towards her and repeatedly punched her on the head, and she was knocked to the ground.

He then later threw a glass at her as his anger increased. She called police, and he was arrested. The pair are no longer in contact.

Reynolds, of Letham Gait, Dalgety Bay, Fife, pleaded guilty to assault at their house in Atholl Terrace, Kirkcaldy, on 26 May. He also admitted breaching a bail condition not to contact Ms Aitken.

Reynolds, who has also served in Iraq, was due to be sentenced last month, but he did not turn up and his solicitor, Krista Johnston, said he had gone "Awol" from the army.

She said yesterday: "On the date he was due to appear he was in Wiltshire visiting his four-year-old son. His son has kidney problems. He thought he was due back the next week in the chaos of the situation.

"My client is still technically Awol from the army. Captain David Hood is here with him today. After the case he is to travel to Inverness to see the commanding officer about his situation.

"He has been Awol since about October. There seems to have been a deterioration of his mental health. He will speak to a psychiatrist in the army when he arrives in Inverness, it appears."

Sheriff James Williamson acknowledged that Reynolds was a "highly decorated soldier" and asked to close the court to speak to Capt Hood about Reynolds's situation.After the doors were re-opened, Sheriff Williamson said he would defer the case for six months, and said it was likely that Reynolds would be admonished when he returns if he receives the help he needed.

He said: "I know maybe you want the decks cleared in this case, but some of what I heard concerned me. What I want to do is to defer for six months.

"There are things in place to assist you in the army, it appears. I don't think your army career will come to an end because of this, but I want to see how the services they have can help you. I will be likely to deal with this case by admonition in six months' time."

Reynolds is estranged from his wife Becca, 30, the mother of his son, Joshua, four. They live in Trowbridge, Wiltshire.