THE girlfriend of a convicted sex attacker is standing by him and has agreed to be his wife.

Joseph Porter, 37, was jailed for life this week for a savage sex attack

on a 21-year-old student who then lost her unborn baby.

But his girlfriend, Louise Stanford, 21, says he is "like a pussycat" with her.

Drug-user Porter used a frying pan and a casserole dish in the frenzied attack on his victim in August last year. He then strangled her and sexually assaulted her.

Louise, of Madeira Place, Brighton, said: "The attack was totally out of character.

"I'm ashamed and I feel sick about what he's done, but he is very remorseful.

"I was expecting his baby, but when I found out about this I had an abortion. I didn't want to have to explain to my child where his dad was.

"I'm a victim in all this too. I'm being treated for depression."

Mother

Porter and Louise met at a mutual friend's flat in Moulsecoomb a year ago.

The mother of two-and-a-half-year-old Ryan said Porter never revealed his violent side to her and treated her son as his own.

She said: "He used to take Ryan out, put him to bed and babysit for him.

"I'm in love with him, and he loves me. He's kind, he used to bring me home boxes of chocolates and clothes and we used to go for long walks on the beach."

The first Louise knew of the attack was when she saw a photo of her boyfriend on the TV.

Porter had told her he was going to his home town of Stockport to get the contact details of his family in Australia so they could go out there.

In fact he spent his travel money on drink and bets and found himself wandering the streets of Brighton before carrying out the vicious assault and then going on the run.

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