The chief executive of a hedge fund hit his partner in the face with a book during a row at their £1.5 million home in Belgravia, a court heard.
Andrew Crane, 44, admits throwing the book which then struck his girlfriend, Victoria Diethardt, during an argument on May 28.
He claims that was the end of the assault but Ms Diethardt says he continued to attack her with another book and punched her repeatedly in the head. Crane, the chief executive of Mayfair-based hedge fund Fenician Capital, appeared in the dock at Westminster magistrates’ court this week to plead guilty to assault by beating .
Prosecutor Jonathan Bryan told the court that Crane “accepts throwing a book at her, which hit her, but says he did that recklessly.
“Her account is that he then took [another] book and hit her with it over the head.
“She says he continued to punch her on the head several times but he didn’t leave any marks.”
Crane was arrested a short time later after police were called to the couple’s rented home in Ebury Street, Belgravia.
Magistrates adjourned the case until August 17, when a hearing is due to be held to determine the extent of the attack. Crane, who is seeking legal aid for the criminal proceedings, will be sentenced once that hearing has taken place.
He has been released on bail on condition he does not try to contact Ms Diethardt or go to the flat. However, the court agreed that Crane can return to the property one last time, accompanied by a police officer, to collect his belongings, because the tenancy is due to expire next month.
Crane told the court he has been living with his parents in Wick St Lawrence, Somerset, since the assault.
