'Blood was everywhere': Brutal axe attack leaves grandfather with huge head wound
A man who was struck on the head with an axe while trying to protect his home from burglars has spoken of his horror at the savage attack.
Nigel Jones, aged 57, of Gretton Crescent, Aldridge, had been relaxing in his lounge in the early hours of Saturday morning when three men smashed his kitchen door window through with a house brick.
Mr Jones, an engineering lecturer at Stourbridge College, heard a loud bang before moving to check on what had happened when another brick was thrown through the window, striking him and knocking him to the ground.
He said: "I was lying on my back, completely in shock and I looked up to see that they were trying to break another window using an axe.
"I was terrified but I got up to grab the set of keys, which I always leave in my back door because I could see that they were trying to reach around to get them.
"For all of this time I was shouting, telling them to leave and they didn't say one word, they were just trying to get in."
As Mr Jones defended his home he was hit on the head with an axe by one of the masked men. He was also hit with a baseball bat as he used a snooker cue to try and protect himself.
The attack left him needing 15 stitches and facing time off work. While nothing was taken, the physical and mental scars will be with Mr Jones for a long time.
He said: "It felt like a lifetime but it couldn't have been more than a couple of minutes.
"Nothing can prepare you for this, I was just doing what I thought was the right thing to do, it is a blur now but the memories I do have will stay with me.
"I remember blood being everywhere, it was horrific. I am having counselling now and that is probably going to be something I will need for a long time.
"I am struggling with getting to sleep because I don't feel safe.
"It would never change what happened but the only thing that could make me feel better right now is if these men were caught and brought to justice.
"This has turned my life upside down, I don't know where I stand at the moment with when I can go back to work or how long it is until I at least start to feel a bit better.
"Psychologically I am worried because with this happening so soon after I lost my dad it has really hit me hard."
After the attack Mr Jones, who had shared the house with his father until his death last year, called on a friend to take him to hospital.
He said: "I am lucky that he answered because I was so confused at the time and in so much pain."
The friend, Robert Devine, has been sharing photographs of the injuries sustained by Nigel on Facebook in an effort to help catch those responsible.
He said: "Nigel is one of the nicest men you will ever meet. We would be thankful for anybody with any information, these vermin need taking away so we can all live in a better place, this is just wrong.
"I think if the axe had gone 1mm deeper he wouldn't have been able to ring me for help."
West Midlands Police spokesperson Sharn Braich said: "Police were alerted to a suspected attempted burglary in Gretton Crescent, Aldridge, on Saturday April 22.
"A 57-year-old man was disturbed in his home in the early hours of Saturday morning by three men who smashed his kitchen door window.
"When defending his property and not allowing them access inside, he was hit with a baseball bat and what is believed to be an axe.
"The men all left after striking the man, who was then taken to hospital by a friend and treated for his injuries.
"He was released shortly after treatment and allowed home. Nothing was stolen from the house.
"Anyone with information is urged to call police on 101 quoting 20WS/83200B/17."
