Attacker faces life for brutal stabbing
A knife attacker was facing the rest of his life behind bars today after being found guilty of trying to murder two pensioners in their own home.
A knife attacker was facing the rest of his life behind bars today after being found guilty of trying to murder two pensioners in their own home.
David Brown was told by the Black Country's top judge he was likely to be handed an indeterminate sentence, which means he may never be released, for the savage attack on Evelyn Leedham, aged 74, and her 77-year-old husband Reg.
A jury at Wolverhampton Crown Court yesterday took two hours to convict Brown of trying to kill the Leedhams on December 4.
The trial heard how Brown slashed their wrists after bursting into the ninth-floor flat demanding money. He stabbed Mrs Leedham in the stomach and throat.
Jobless Brown, who lived on the same floor as his victims at 15-storey St Joseph's Court, Merry Hill, Wolverhampton, repeatedly refused pleas to phone for an ambulance.
Judge John Warner said he would wait for psychiatric reports before passing sentence on August 24, adding: "At the moment, there's a high likelihood that it may be an indeterminate sentence."
Police today revealed Mr Leedham, who tried to fight off Brown with his walking stick, regretted being "unable to protect his wife".