Man with history of attacking family jailed for throwing boiling salty water over dad

A young man described as "dangerous" has been sentenced after he left his father with burns to his neck and chest in a savage attack. Daniel Gaunt, who had put turps in his mum's wine, grabbed his gran by the neck and assaulted his step father involving a screwdriver in a spate of incidents over the years, has been jailed for his latest outburst which saw his dad needing hospital treatment. Newcastle Crown Court heard how the 22-year-old had argued with his dad while the pair were at his grandmother's house in September. Despite a cooling off period, Gaunt filled and boiled a kettle before adding a significant amount of salt to the water to try and increase the amount of damage he could inflict by using the hot water as a weapon. Gaunt then doused his father with the water in the garden, leaving him with burns to his neck and chest, reports Chronicle Live. The victim was taken to hospital and was found to have superficial burns which had blistered on the affected area. In a victim impact statement, he said: "Above everything else, what I feel most is an overwhelming sadness that things have reached this point. It breaks my heart to think about the impact this has had on my daughter and mother. Both have suffered immense stress and anxiety because of what happened. "I'm devastated. I feel utterly betrayed by Daniel and I still can't make sense of what he did. We've had arguments in the past but nothing that made me believe it would come to this. "I keep going over it and trying to understand it but I can't. It's a level of hurt I never expected to feel from my own son. Our relationship had already deteriorated because of his behaviour, especially when under the influence of drink and drugs. "I never imagined things would escalate to the point where I would feel unsafe or betrayed in this way. I don't know if I will ever be able to trust him again." The court heard Gaunt, 22, previously of Jarrow, South Tyneside, but of no fixed address, has 26 previous convictions, including for violence. In 2021, he assaulted his stepdad in an offence involving a screwdriver. In 2024, he was sentenced for administering a poison or noxious thing after putting turps into her wine and threatened to burn down her house. In 2025 he assaulted his grandmother after she refused to give him a cigarette. He became angry and aggressive before grabbing his gran by the neck and telling her he would "smash her face in". For the latest offence, he was found guilty by a jury of attempted GBH with intent and has now been jailed for four-and-a-half years with an extended licence period of a further four-and-a-half years after a judge concluded he was a dangerous offender. A ten-year restraining order was imposed in respect of his gran. Judge Sarah Mallett said he failed to cause the really serious injury to his dad which he intended but said the damage he did cause would have been very painful. She told Gaunt: "You have repeatedly targeted those who are most close to you and you have also committed offences against strangers which leads me to the conclusion you are dangerous. There is a real and serious risk you will succeed in causing serious harm." Robin Turton, defending, said Gaunt has mental health issues. He acknowledged that while his family love him, they will be frightened of his behaviour when he is drunk or on drugs and said he is a "different person" when not under the influence of substances. After the case, Detective Sergeant Daniel Ross said: “This must have been a truly horrendous ordeal for the victim, who has been left with lifelong scars from Gaunt’s actions that day. Gaunt took the time to go back inside, and even add salt to the water, ensuring that the assault would do even more damage. “He is clearly a very dangerous individual and I am pleased he’s beginning a stint behind bars. Violence has absolutely no place in our communities, and we will continue to do everything in our power to bring those responsible for offences such as those carried out in this case before the courts to face justice.” Ensure our latest news and sport headlines always appear at the top of your Google Search by making us a Preferred Source. Click here to activate or add us as Preferred Source.