A Metropolitan Police officer flew into a rage and attacked her detective lover after spotting her putting salt on a meal she had prepared, a court has heard.

Detective Constable Asweina Gutty, 34, grabbed Detective Constable Sharon Etheridge around the throat, pushed her against a wall and screamed at her for seasoning the food she had cooked.

The victim, who had left her husband to begin a relationship with Gutty, admitted it had broken her heart to report her for domestic violence but said she had been terrified by the "rage in her eyes".

Westminster Magistrates' Court heard how Ms Etheridge, who was married with children, began an intense relationship with Gutty after they met while working together at the Community Safety Unit in Bethnal Green, east London.

The court heard that Gutty had cooked a meal for the pair at her flat in Stoke Newington, north London, but had become angry when Ms Etheridge added salt to her dish.