Man jailed for 24 years after ex-partner murder attempt that sparked manhunt

HomeNewsUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC InDepthBBC VerifySportBusinessWorld of BusinessTechnology of BusinessNYSE Opening BellTechnologyWatch DocumentariesArtificial IntelligenceIntelligence RevolutionAI v the MindTech NowHealthWatch DocumentariesCultureWatch DocumentariesFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsArtsWatch DocumentariesArts in MotionTravelWatch DocumentariesDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListTo the Ends of the Earth EarthWatch DocumentariesScienceNatural WondersClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingAudioPodcast CategoriesRadioAudio FAQsVideoWatch DocumentariesBBC MaestroDiscover the WorldLiveLive NewsLive SportDocumentariesSite searchHomeNewsSportBusinessTechnologyHealthCultureArtsTravelEarthAudioVideoLiveDocumentariesWeatherNewslettersMan jailed for 24 years after ex-partner murder attempt that sparked manhunt46 minutes agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleMeleri WilliamsBBC Wales, Swansea Crown CourtDyfed Powys PoliceJames McKenna from Carmarthen was arrested after a four-day manhuntA man who repeatedly stabbed his ex-partner in the chest and then fled, launching a four-day manhunt, has been jailed for 24 years.

Joanne Sidaway, 49, screamed as she was attacked by James McKenna, 58, in the bushes of Carmarthen Park in January.

He then hid in a wood near Carmarthen for three days without food and water, before being arrested in hospital while he was being treated for frostbite.

Earlier this year, McKenna pleaded guilty to wounding with intent, but in July was found guilty of attempted murder.

On Friday, Judge Paul Thomas KC said the attack was "wholly calculated", and McKenna had left Sidaway to die in the bushes.

McKenna had waited for Sidaway to enter the park on 29 January with her dog, before crouching down in the bushes, ready to launch his attack.

A jury at Swansea Crown Court heard McKenna was "angry" after their relationship ended a few months earlier, and it was "luck" that she did not die, with her winter coat helping to save her.

During the trial, he told the jury he had put the newest, sharpest knife from his kitchen in his bag that morning, with the intention of using it to hurt Sidaway.

He said he wanted to cause Sidaway "serious harm" but not kill her.

"I felt she was reluctant to re-engage with me, and not even say hello," he said.

As she approached, he stabbed her multiple times, in what he agreed was "a rage of anger".

He told the court he was "shocked" at what he had done.

"I was aiming for her shoulder area and the upper body. I didn't want to kill her."

He said the attack was interrupted after Sidaway told him to stop and screamed, and a neighbour shouted.

Neighbour Susan Edwards told the court during the trial in July she heard "high-pitched screaming" and the "bushes shaking" before a man ran away.

Sidaway phoned for an ambulance and said: "I've been stabbed by my ex-partner… he's been stalking me".

McKenna fled the scene following the attack, and said he dumped his rucksack, with the knife, at an allotment near the park after he ate a yoghurt there.

He then walked to Bronwydd, a village about three miles (4km) north of Carmarthen, along the River Gwili.

"I found some shelter, a quiet woodland away from the road," he said.

"I was devastated and kept having flashbacks."

He said he was there for three nights, before he travelled via taxi and bus to Bronglais Hospital in Aberystwyth, Ceredigion.

Police bodycam footage was shown to the jury of Sidaway sitting on her doorstep with paramedics, covered in blood.

The jury heard there were 17 areas of damage to Sidaway's coat, and were shown images of her "extensively blood-stained" clothing as well as injuries to her chest, arm and hand.

Sidaway did not wish to share a victim personal statement.

Sentencing McKenna, Thomas said: "You had been in a relationship with a woman of whose vulnerabilities you would have been fully aware.

"When she decided, as was entirely her prerogative, that she no longer wanted to be in a relationship with you, you reacted, as you had done in the past, immaturely, and more significantly with violence.

"You stalked her in the park in Carmarthen that morning, then you returned in the afternoon with exactly the same intention. It was planned, and it was wholly calculated.

"You stabbed her no fewer than 11 times. Three of those being to the chest and therefore heart area.

"That lady only survived because it was a cold day and she as wearing five layers under a thick coat. But after you did that, you left her to die in bushes in a park.

"You only handed yourself in when you developed frostbite from sleeping rough."

He said McKenna was "full of self-pity".

The court heard McKenna had been convicted of assault against an ex-partner in August 2016, after pushing her neck and pulling her hair.

Prosecution barrister James Wilson said it demonstrated that he was "unwilling to accept the end of that relationship".

Caroline Rees KC, defending, said the "best point in mitigation" she could make on his behalf was that of the "remorse" he had shown since the incident.

She referenced a letter from defendant in which he "expresses his sorrow and regret" for what happened, she said.

Lucy Mansfield, of the Crown Prosecution Service said: "McKenna's actions were cold and calculated, deliberately taking a knife to a public place to attack his ex-partner.

"He committed a shocking act of violence, which must have been terrifying for the victim.

"We will continue to work with our partners in the criminal justice system to tackle these abhorrent offences."

Welsh Women's Aid Chief Executive Sara Kirkpatrick said this was a "carefully planned" attack.

"Sadly, post-separation abuse, stalking, following a domestically abusive relationship is remarkably common," she said.

"While we can ask ourselves how we make our spaces and places safer, this was an intentional act by an individual who made a plan and chose a place, and identified where his victim would be.

She added that was why the charity campaigned for social change, "so that we don't find ourselves in a place where individuals think that pursuing vengeance in this manner is an acceptable route".

Swansea Crown Court heard he will spend two thirds of his sentence in prison, before being released on licence.