Schizopehrenic man given life sentence for ‘deliberate’ assault on uniformed Army officer | UK | News | EUROtoday

A schizopehrenic man who repeatedly stabbed a uniformed Army officer close to a barracks might be detained in hospital. Anthony Esan, 25, was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimal time period of seven years and 162 days at Maidstone Crown Court.

The courtroom heard how Esan had “murderous fantasies” and carried out a “vicious, deliberate attack” on 47-year-old Lieutenant Colonel Mark Teeton in Sally Port Gardens, close to Brompton Barracks in Kent, on July 23, 2024. The 25-year-old, who was born in Nigeria and moved to the UK in 2009, used two knives within the assault and stabbed the officer no less than 12 instances.

The prosecution mentioned Esan purchased a set of knives from Argos previous to the stabbing. He additionally made plenty of web searches for earlier comparable assaults, together with the homicide of soldier Lee Rigby.

Although forensic psychiatrists famous Esan had got down to assault a soldier, they added that he was pushed by psychosis. They agreed he had schizophrenia and he’ll now be detained at Broadmoor Hospital indefinitely.

Esan was led to the dock at Maidstone Crown Court on Friday (February 13) flanked by 6 safety guards. He was sentenced to life after being convicted for one rely of tried homicide, and two counts of possession of a bald weapon in a public place.

Sentencing, High Court Judge Mr Justice Picken mentioned: “The attack on Mr Teeton was targeted and deliberate. You were looking for a soldier with the intention that that soldier should die, as underlined by the fact you had looked up the killing of Lee Rigby on the internet.”

The courtroom heard how Lt Col Teeton’s spouse, Eileen Teeton, rushed to the scene and pushed Esan off her husband. Mr Justice Picken counseled her actions, saying: “Her actions were remarkable – cctv showed him on the phone to police while trying to pull you away.”

He added: “This was the most appalling attack on a serving soldier, the horror of the attack is unimaginable. You’re unlikely to ever be released back into the community with a risk of reoccurrence. Dignity and courage shown by the whole family has been nothing short of remarkable.”

Father-of-two Lt Col Teeton, who has served within the British military for 26 years and has been on two excursions of Iraq and two excursions of Afghanistan, was strolling house from the barracks when he was attacked by Esan on the street. He was carrying an Army uniform, boots and beret on the time of the stabbing.

The courtroom heard how “a man was seen running up behind” the Army officer earlier than pulling him to the bottom and stabbing him “repeatedly”. They had been then seen driving away from the scene on a moped.

Mr Justice Picken added: “In my opinion more likely than not his mental illness was the key driver for this offence – Mr Esan was suffering from an abnormality of mental function at the time of the offence.”

He continued: “You were searching on the internet about the attack on Lee Rigby just days before you attacked Mr Teeton, a soldier. You carried out reconnaisaance the day before the attack – I am sure in those circumstances that Mr Teeton was only attacked because he was wearing military uniform and he was so obviously a soldier.”

Lt Col Teeton was rushed to hospital with critical accidents and was discharged 4 weeks later. He turned tearful in courtroom, saying he’ll “forever be in gratitude” to the “heroes” who helped him on the day of the assault.

He mentioned: “I still relive the incident in my mind; I actually think it is a blessing that I was unconscious for much of it as it means that I am unable to remember a large part of being attacked. I don’t think I will truly appreciate the courage shown by my wife and strangers to thwart the attack and then the quick thinking of an array of people that helped save my life.”

Katie Samways, Specialist Prosecutor from the Crown Prosecution Service, mentioned: “Anthony Esan carried out a violent attack on a member of our military who was simply walking along the street.

“Following an extensive police investigation, the Crown Prosecution Service worked to build the strongest possible case that left Esan with no alternative but to plead guilty.

“Esan has never given a reason for this attempted murder and after many months of careful investigation into his mental health, today he has finally acknowledged and taken responsibility for his horrendous actions on that fateful day.

“None of us can imagine what the victim and his family have been through over the last 18 months, and we hope that today’s guilty plea brings them some small comfort. Our thoughts remain with them.”