A TAXI driver who smashed his car into the front of his ex-girlfriend's house in a suicide bid has had his jail term increased.

Darren Haakanson had two months added to his sentence after Swindon Magistrates Court heard how he burst into the home of his former partner's estranged husband and attacked him.

The 33-year-old punched and kicked Adrian Dobson as he lay in bed, after smashing down the door to his house in the early hours of the morning.

Earlier this month Haakanson was jailed for two and a half years after a judge at the crown court heard how he drove his Renault Espace into Kerry Dobson's home on Penhill Drive.

At the time of the offence he was on bail two weeks before he had also gone to her house during the night and damaged property.

On that night Haakanson also went to the home of Adrian Dobson, the estranged husband of Mrs Dobson, and after kicking down the door attacked him as he lay in his bed.

Rhys Davies, prosecuting, told magistrates that the victim had split from Kerry Dobson in July 2000.

He added: "The separation was not amicable and once they were separated his wife became involved with the defendant."

He added that Mr Dobson had known the defendant for some time, and that he began 'having trouble' with him after he started seeing his estranged wife.

At about 4am on Tuesday, January 7, Mr Davies said, Mr Dobson and his 10-year-old son were upstairs asleep when there was a knock at the door.

Mr Davies added: "He heard the defendant shout 'Come on, where are you' and then the door burst open and he heard footsteps coming up. Mr Dobson called the police.

"The defendant came into his bedroom and walked up to the side of the bed and yelled 'Get up! Get up!'.

"He then leaned over the bed and started punching him to the head. He said 'I'm going to kill you, I don't care, I am going to go down for this'. He landed about 10 punches and also kicks to the head."

Fearing the worst, Mr Davies said, the victim curled into a ball to try to protect himself from the blows raining on him, but Haakanson left the scene.

At an earlier hearing Haakanson, of Pewsham Drive, pleaded guilty to common assault and criminal damage to the front door and the door frame.

Rob Ross, defending, said that his client had been sentenced to the two and a half year jail term less than two weeks ago. He said Judge Charles Wade had imposed concurrent terms of imprisonment for the other criminal damage charges.

However, the magistrates decided the matter was so serious that they should impose a separate sentence.

They passed a two-month consecutive term for the assault, with a concurrent 14 days for criminal damage.