A MAN killed his girlfriend on a "date night" meant to "rekindle" their relationship, a court heard today.

Mum-of-two Levi Ogden, 26, was discovered in Halifax, in November, and died later in hospital.

Lloyd Birkby, 27, was initially charged with murdering Ms Ogden, but prosecutors accepted his plea of guilty to a charge of manslaughter.

He also pleaded guilty to common assault in relation to another woman on the same night.

Hours before she was killed, Ms Ogden posted a snap of the pair as they enjoyed a pub crawl around Halifax.

The 26-year-old captioned the Facebook snap: "Date night, first one in forever."

A close friend of Levi, who did not wish to be named, said: "Lloyd had a dreadful temper and Levi had suffered at his hands before.

"But she still loved him and he was the father of her kids. They has split up a couple of times before because of his domestic violence against Levi.

"That night was supposed to be another attempt at reconciliation and to give their relationship another go, to rekindle it, but he just returned to his bad old ways and the date night ended in her death."

Appearing via video-link at Bradford Crown Court, Birkby, from Elland, West Yorkshire, was remanded in custody and told he would be sentenced on April 8.

Prosecutor Dafydd Enoch QC said the intended pleas were considered in detail both with the team involved in the investigation and Ms Ogden's family.

"The bottom line is that plea is acceptable to the Crown," he said.

Mr Enoch said the prosecution intended to offer no evidence on the murder charge.

Birkby's defence barrister Stephen Wood QC told the judge that a psychologist's assessment of his client was ongoing.

Judge Jonathan Rose said Birkby would be sentenced for the manslaughter and common assault by the Recorder of Leeds next month.

He added: "You know full well a custodial sentence will follow."

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