Blackburn man jailed for stabbing police officer at hostel

Mohammed Mulla, 27, of Heaton Street, appeared before Preston Crown Court charged with one count of common assault and one count of attempted section 18 wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

The charges relate to an incident on March 10, when the defendant was staying at the Salvation Army homeless hostel.

He began banging on the door and screaming at another resident to turn their music down.

The situation quickly escalated as the defendant shoved the resident, which led to the police being called.

Upon arrival, police had to force their way into the room, and as PC Lyons tried to arrest the defendant, he felt a number of strikes to his left arm, before another officer shouted knife.

Quickly grabbing the defendant, the officers discovered a small kitchen knife on the floor, with Mulla threatening to kill the officer.

Judge Guy Mathieson said: "When you were confronted by officers, you produced a knife and tried to stab an officer, only prevented from causing serious injuries by his stab vest.

“In the pre-sentence report, which I accept has positive features, you fully put the blame on your victim, the lady in the Salvation Army, for the way in which she conducted herself and the way the police officers were aggressive.

“As if that gives any justification for producing a knife and trying to stab an officer. They were just doing their job.”

PC Lyons sustained no injuries due to the protective body armour he was wearing.

A victim impact statement, read out by prosecutor Patrick Williamson, said: “I consider myself fortunate and lucky not to have suffered serious injury.

“I replay the incident in my mind, and a matter of inches to the left or right could have led to extreme blood loss or, in an extreme circumstance, death.

“My biggest fear is not returning home to my family. I have not been to another incident involving a knife, but when I inevitably deploy to another, I hope that my level of training is intuitive and I work professionally and that there aren’t unknown trauma issues.

“I have been assaulted a number of times, but I know this will stay with me for my career and beyond.”

Mr Williamson said the defendant had two previous convictions for assaulting officers.

Emma Kehoe, mitigating, said Mulla had a difficult upbringing, following his father's suicide at a young age.

She added that his time in prison had been “hugely positive” for the defendant, where he had spent time reflecting and building.

Ms Kehoe said: “Because he is allowed the time and space on his own, he now understands that the difficulties he had as a child and adolescent are stemming from some mental health issues, anxiety and depression.

“They haven’t been diagnosed; he has always struggled with relationships and found it difficult to be in other people’s company.

“In this period of self-reflection, he now realises all of those things. He has been received positively by the head of the wing, and he has got a full-time job in the kitchen.

“He has had the time to do both, and he interacts with people when he is working, and he is also given the time to deal with the stresses and anxieties and has developed his own stress management by exercising, pausing and taking deep breaths and reading books.

“He is an entirely different person from when I initially spoke to him on remand.”

Mulla was sentenced to five years' imprisonment.