Two jailed after stabbing man in 'brutal attack'

A man and woman have been jailed for stabbing a man in the chest in a "brutal attack".

Mark Grinnall, 51, and Katrina Henson, 48, admitted stabbing a man at a property in Jamaica Street, Bristol, on the morning of 27 September, before fleeing the scene.

The victim, aged in his 40s, required hospital treatment over several weeks after he was punched and stabbed by the pair.

At Bristol Crown Court on Thursday, Grinnall, of no fixed address, was sentenced to five years and four months imprisonment, while Henson, of Bishopsworth, was sentenced to four years and eight months imprisonment.

Both of them will serve a minimum of two-thirds of their sentence before being eligible for release, police said.

In a statement prepared for the court, the victim said the attack continued to affect him physically, emotionally, psychologically and financially.

He said he feared going about his daily life, even though he had moved elsewhere.

Grinnall and Henson were identified through CCTV footage and were arrested on 2 October.

Officers believed the offenders mistook the victim for someone else, based on comments recorded on camera.

Grinnall was found hiding in a garden shed at a property and made remarks - which were captured on an officer's bodyworn camera - stating he thought the victim had been killed.

Both offenders were charged with attempted murder, but guilty pleas to assault causing grievous bodily harm and possession of a knife which were entered at a previous court appearance were accepted instead, police said.

His Honour Judge Michael Cullum said the pair tricked their way into the building and clearly had planned to attack someone due to their possession of a knife.

PC Abdo Al Arab, from Avon and Somerset Police, said: "Katrina Henson and Mark Grinnall carried out a brutal attack and fled the scene with seemingly no thought to the man they had severely injured.

"The comments made by Grinnall on arrest show that he himself thought the attack was sufficiently serious that it could have had fatal consequences and his main concern appeared to be what he was being arrested for, and not the welfare of the man he and Henson seriously hurt.

"The victim's support throughout this investigation has been important to help us bring these two offenders before the courts and we hope he continues to recover from this horrendous ordeal."

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