A POLICE inspector is facing the sack after he admitted assaulting his wife.

Insp Mustaq (Muz) Patala, 33, had been seen as a rising star of Lancashire police and oversaw neighbourhood policing in Blackburn with Darwen, Hyndburn and Ribble Valley.

But today his career was in ruins after he pleaded guilty to two counts of common assault against the mother of his three children, Zaheda.

Several more serious charges of threatening unlawful violence and affray occasioning actual bodily harm were dropped.

Patala had denied these allegations. Preston Crown Court heard his wife turned hostile and claimed officers were trying to frame him.

She withdrew her complaint and refused to co-operate with authorities.

The original list of charges alleged a decade of abuse, starting in 1999 when Mrs Patala was pregnant.

But yesterday Patala, now living on London Road, Blackburn, admitted the common assaults in relation to two incidents.

The first was on April 8, 2009, on the day his wife took her driving theory test.

Prosecutors alleged Patala punched her in the ribs, then grabbed her by the clothing and pulled her back when she got away from him.

However, Patala pleaded guilty on the basis he pushed rather than punched his wife.

The court heard that incident was partially witnessed by two of the couple's children, aged eight and 10.

The second admission related to a domestic violence incident at their Pleckgate Road home in October 28, 2010, when a row broke out and he threw furniture across the room, damaging doors, walls and then kicked a laptop screen.

Patala was arrested on November 4 after a row between the couple, the court heard.

Prosecuting, Michael Maher said that two to three weeks later Mrs Patala said she was not prepared to assist the authorities.

He said: “She suggested police impropriety in obtaining her original statement and the AVE (audio and video evidence) of two of her children.”

Mr Maher said he had to summons Mrs Patala to give evidence herself and summons her to produce the children to give evidence against their father.

As she had declined permission for police to access her medical records, the CPS had to summons her doctor to release the documents as well.

Mr Maher told the court that the children were 'terrified' and one of them had been sick in the court corridor, waiting for the start of the trial.

He said senior figures within the CPS and the police had 'thought long and hard' before deciding not to pursue the further charges against Patala.

Mr Maher said it was 'not a palatable prospect' to proceed because of a lack of witness evidence.

Judge Stuart Baker raised concerns at the outcome.

He said: “I do question whether the public interest is being served by a case not being prosecuted before a jury when someone is accused of allegations that he behaved in a persistently violent and abusive way over the years.

“I cannot express any great enthusiasm for this course.”

In setting sentencing for July 15, Judge Baker reminded Patala that all sentencing options are open.

He was given conditional bail, with access to his children only under supervision.

Insp Patala had been one of the shining lights of Eastern Division, overseeing neighbourhood policing – the cornerstone of Lancashire Police's esteemed reputation.

He enjoyed a high profile, leading successful campaigns such as Operation Staysafe, which helped hundreds of children every weekend if found boozing on the streets.

The Lancashire Telegraph understands he is expected to be dismissed at a misconduct hearing.

The constabulary confirmed he will now face an internal disciplinary hearing, in private.

John O'Reilly, chairman of the Lancashire Police Federation, said Patala's colleagues were 'shocked' at the time of his arrest.

He said: “Muz was very highly thought of. It always comes as a shock when a colleague is arrested, certainly when there was no hint of anything going wrong.

“But, as he has been brought before court and pleaded guilty, we can only await the outcome. ”