A man has been sentenced for attempted murder after launching a violent knife attack on his former partner while she was walking her dog in a Carmarthen park. James McKenna had waited in the bushes for the victim, Ms Sidaway, to enter the park on January 29, harboring anger after their relationship ended a few months prior. A jury at Swansea Crown Court was told that it was largely due to luck and the thickness of her winter coat that she survived the assault.
During the trial, McKenna admitted that he packed the newest and sharpest knife from his kitchen into his bag that morning with the intention of harming her. He claimed during proceedings that he wanted to cause serious harm rather than kill her, explaining that he felt frustrated by her reluctance to re-engage with him or acknowledge him. He acknowledged that he attacked her in a rage as she approached, stabbing her multiple times while aiming for her upper body and shoulder area.
The violent assault was halted when the victim screamed and told him to stop, coinciding with a nearby resident shouting out. Witness Susan Edwards testified that she heard high-pitched screaming and noticed the bushes shaking before seeing a man flee the scene. Following the attack, the victim managed to call an ambulance, reporting that she had been stabbed by her ex-partner who had been stalking her.
McKenna escaped the area immediately after the incident, later discarding his rucksack and the weapon near an allotment after eating a yoghurt. He walked approximately three miles north along the River Gwili to the village of Bronwydd, where he hid in a secluded woodland away from the road for three nights. He ultimately traveled by taxi and bus to a hospital in Aberystwyth, where he was subsequently apprehended.