A MAN allegedly abducted, assaulted and threatened to kill a woman at a house in Mauchline.

Christopher McTaggart is accused of detaining and then attacking the woman at an address in Hughfield Road on May 7, 2023.

The 42-year-old is alleged to have refused to let the woman leave the house and to have seized her by the body and held her down.

The Crown claims that Mr McTaggart then placed his hand over the woman’s mouth and around her neck and that he punched her on the head.

The accused faces a second charge of behaving in a threatening or abusive manner that caused the same woman fear or alarm by allegedly shouting, swearing, uttering abusive remarks, and threatening to kill her.

The prosecution’s indictment states that at the time of the alleged offence Mr McTaggart was the subject of three bail orders – two granted at Falkirk Sheriff Court, on April 27 and June 9, 2022, and one at Banff Sheriff Court on October 19 of that same year.

Mr McTaggart, who is listed in court papers as having an address of HMP Kilmarnock, was not present when the case called at Ayr Sheriff Court last week.

Defence solicitor Tony Currie told Sheriff Shirley Foran that his client was pleading not guilty to the charge and that Mr McTaggart had another case proceeding in a differenc ourt.

He will return to court to face the allegations at a later date.

All accused persons reported in the Chronicle are considered innocent unless and until they plead guilty or are found guilty by a sheriff or a jury.