Man jailed following Blackpool stabbing
5:44pm Wednesday 2nd July 2008
A man convicted of a street stabbing in Blackpool but still claiming he is innocent has been jailed for eight years.
Darren Ford plunged a knife into the lower back of his victim, causing very heavy bleeding.
It was fortunate that it had not injured a vital organ, Preston Crown Court heard.
The stabbing was carried out on a man who had earlier visited Flares nitespot in the resort where he chatted to two women - one of them an ex girlfriend of Ford.
Ford, 37, of Adrian Street, Blackpool, denied a charge of wounding with intent, but had been convicted by a jury.
The trial took place last year and Ford went absent part way through the hearing.
Graham Jones was attacked outside his home on Foxhall Road, lackpool, in the early hours of December 20, 2005.
Mrs Hilary Banks, prosecuting, said that in Flares, Mr Jones chatted with the girls and bought them drinks.
One had had a brief relationship with Ford, who had previously introduced Mr Jones to her.
At one stage, the other girl commented about the defendant saying "His face is growling, he is going sick".
Around 2am Mr Jones and the two girls left the premises.
They got a taxi, making their way towards his home.
As he was putting his key in the door, one of the girls realised that Ford was sat in a parked van, at the side of the road.
The prosecution told the court "She saw him push a knife into Mr Jones' shoulder at the back.
"He had another knife in his left hand.
"It was a kitchen knife in his right hand, about eight inches long, with a dark handle.
"The girls ran and hid down a nearby alleyway", said Mrs Banks.
Mr Jones was found to have a four centimetre by six centimetre laceration to his lower right back.
He was bleeding very heavily from the deep wound and his blood pressure was low.
He spent two days in hospital.
The court also heard that Mr Jones had been unco-operative with the police, not making a statement of complaint.
Ford had previous offences on his record that included assault with intent to rob and unlawful wounding.
Mr Paul Humphries, defending, said Ford had handed himself in at the beginning of May.
"He doesn't accept that he is guilty of this offence. "Graham Jones gave a statement saying he didn't want to speak to the police and didn't want to make any complaint of assault.
"It is unusual when there is no complainant in a case.
"It is significant perhaps that the victim did not wish there to be a complaint".
Judge Anthony Russell QC told Ford "On the evidence available to me, this appears to have been an unprovoked and premeditated wounding which involved the use of a knife.
"It is clear you must have had an intention of wounding him with the knife, what is more your actions resulted in a serious wound to his back.
"It was in the vicinity of the kidney.
"Fortunately, it didn't injure the kidney, or very much more serious consequences may have followed.
"The victim is very fortunate that the knife did not injure a vital organ".