The harrowing moment a young father murdered the mother of his newborn daughter was recorded on a mobile phone, a court has heard.
PhD student Carmen Gabriela Miron-Buchacra's desperate fight for life was caught in a telephone call to one of their friends on the night of June 23 this year, the court heard.
Carmen Gabriela Miron-Buchacra was known as Gaby to her friends
Paul Keene, 32, can be heard swearing at his partner and threatening to kill her during the seven-minute call.
The recording revealed how she was repeatedly punched in the face and strangled with a dressing gown cord and electrical cable.
After the call Keene sent text messages purporting to be from Miss Miron-Buchacra to Mr Jones saying she was okay.
The victim, who was known to friends and family as Gaby, was found dead on the bedroom floor of their first-floor Georgian flat in Bath, Somerset, by emergency services shortly after midnight.
The court heard Keene had spent the day playing boules with work colleagues in Bath and had then met friends in the evening for food and drinks.
Meanwhile, Miss Miron-Buchacra was at home looking after their daughter Eleanor and was becoming increasingly annoyed at Keene's decision to go out for the day.
Keene, an administrator for a financial services firm, and Mexico-born Miss Miron-Buchacra were planning to marry in the autumn of 2013.
"It seems from the text message contact that Gaby was clearly irritated at the amount of time the defendant was socialising and being with his work colleagues," prosecutor Michael Fitton QC said.
"She makes it clear to him that she had taken offence at the choice he made to spend the whole day with them rather than his family."
Mr Fitton said that by late afternoon Miss Miron-Buchacra had walked with Eleanor the short distance from their flat to where Keene was playing boules.
"Gaby had some time talking with Paul Keene and from her expression it seems she was angered by the fact he had said to her something to the effect of 'get used to it'," Mr Fitton said.
"She didn't stay for long and she left with the baby and went to the flat, five to 10 minutes away."
Mr Fitton said that as the evening progressed text messages between Miss Miron-Buchacra and Keene showed an "increase in her irritation and the intensity of her mood".
"Clearly she was still very angry with him and she told him not to come home," he said.
"By 8.45pm she had made it clear she was not going to let him in at home that night."
Keene arrived home at 10.30pm - having drunk eight bottles of beer and a bottle of lager and cider - and was let into the communal building by a neighbour.
He went upstairs to the front door of the flat and texted Miss Miron-Buchacra to let him in.
She immediately replied: "You're at the door? I told you if you went out of this house and our life for a whole day, you do it for life."
Keene replied: "Open it or I'll kick it in."
Mr Fitton explained that at that point a distressed and tearful Miss Miron-Buchacra had phoned Mr Jones - who had been out with Keene that night in Bath - and asked him to take the defendant back to his home in Chippenham, Wiltshire.
Mr Jones told her that he was already on the train home, so there was nothing he could do.
When he got off the train, Mr Jones realised there was a message on his mobile phone that was an argument between Keene and his partner. The call lasted from 10.45pm until 10.53pm.
"He could hear that Gaby was crying and was accusing Paul Keene of being drunk and to get out and leave the flat," Mr Fitton said.
"Without listening to all of the call, he tried ringing Paul Keene to try and speak to him but got no reply.
"He also tried ringing Gaby but got no reply."
Mr Fitton explained that the call was difficult to hear the precise words between Keene and Miss Miron-Buchacra because of the sound quality.
"The call is also difficult to hear because of its emotive nature," Mr Fitton added.
Miss Miron-Buchacra said to Keene: "You are drunk, get out of the house."
Keene replies: "What the f*** is your problem? You show up like a f****** wanky bitch.
"Carry on like this and I am going to end up in prison because you are going to be dead. I might kill you because you are a f****** twat."
Mr Fitton said: "She told him to stop and she could be heard screaming. She can be heard begging him to stop and pleading for him to get off her.
"And the defendant has been heard to say 'f****** bitch' and saying 'I'll kill you'.
"The sound of choking can be heard. There are sounds of banging and screaming and her last words 'Please don't' and there is silence."
Mr Jones sent text messages to Miss Miron-Buchacra asking if she was okay. At 11.30pm he received a reply, in which she said "It's okay Ben, I'm okay."
He asked her to call him but two minutes later Mr Jones received a reply, which said "Just gone out for a walk to calm down."
"It is the prosecution's case that these text messages at 11.12pm and 11.32pm from Gaby, she was almost certainly dead," Mr Fitton said.
"As far as we can tell Gaby was unconscious and likely to be dead by 11pm.
"If that is right, these text messages were not sent by her and it follows these messages were sent by the defendant purporting to be Gaby to Ben Jones pretending she was well and walking around the streets of Bath."
Meanwhile, Mr Jones was texting Keene telling him he had 10 minutes to get Gaby to ring him or he was calling the police.
At 11.18pm Keene replied and said: "What? I got home and she'd gone crazy."
He sent a further message saying Miss Miron-Buchacra had gone out for a walk and added: "She went mental on me mate because I played boule. Gaby told me off, accusing me of putting work before family. It's bullshit. I love my family xx."