A Nova Scotia man is headed to jail for pricking holes in condoms in an attempt to get his girlfriend pregnant and save their relationship.

Craig Jaret Hutchinson, 41, was sentenced Friday to 18 months in prison for sexual assault.

The Crown asked for a two-year prison sentence, while the defence wanted a two-year suspended sentence and probation.

Nova Scotia Supreme Court Justice Richard Coughlan said a suspended sentence was "totally inadequate."

Hutchinson, of Clyde River, was dating a woman for several months in 2006. When she told him she wanted to end the relationship, he decided to puncture her condoms so she would get pregnant and stay with him.

The woman became pregnant. She had an abortion and suffered an infection of her uterus.

The woman called police after Hutchinson told her what he did to the condoms. Police subsequently charged him with aggravated sexual assault.

Hutchinson was acquitted in 2009. The judge said Hutchinson's actions were "dastardly" but didn't constitute sexual assault.

The Nova Scotia Court of Appeal ordered a new trial last year.

Hutchison was convicted of sexual assault in September.