Man jailed for frenzied stabbing of pensioner at Manchester bus stop

A man who stabbed a 74-year-old woman at a Manchester bus stop in a frenzied attack has been jailed indefinitely.

David Walters, 23, shouted "die, die!" at Maria Morrison as he stabbed her in the unprovoked attack near Southern Cemetery in Chorlton last December.

After the attack he spat on the ground but officers managed to take a sample of his saliva and track him down.

Walters, of Vixen Close, Chorlton-cum-Hardy, had pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to attempted murder.

He was ordered to serve a minimum of seven years by a judge at Manchester Crown Court.

Greater Manchester Police said that on 29 December 2011, Walters had posted a number of threatening messages on Facebook about his cousin, who had used the website to approach his girlfriend.

Later that day, he armed himself with a 10in (25cm) knife and left his house on the Nell Lane Estate some time before 10:20 GMT.

He spotted Mrs Morrison sitting at a bus stop at the junction of Arrowfield Road and Wintermans Road, and then went at her with the knife in an attack described as unprovoked and random.

He screamed "Die, die!" and "I'll kill you" as he repeatedly stabbed her.

Mrs Morrison used her arms to defend herself and kicked out at Walters while shouting for help.

He tried to stab her in the head, but failed and ran off along Wintermans Road.

Despite bleeding heavily from multiple stab wounds, Mrs Morrison managed to stop a passing car and the police and ambulance service were called.

The incident was caught on CCTV, and when police watched the footage they noticed Walters had spat on the ground near the scene.

An officer was sent to the site and managed to collect a sample for forensic analysis.

Mrs Morrison described the attack as "terrifying".

She said: "I was sat down in the bus stop and just somebody came out with a knife in his hand and he started slashing my face.

"I covered my face with the hand and my hand got cut, I was bleeding everywhere

"I managed to get out of the seat and he was stabbing my back, my arm, my side. I just stood up - I didn't want to run away from him because I didn't know what his intention was.

"He grabbed my shoulder and pushed me against the fence of the cemetery and I just saw the end, the end of my life. But something said to me: No, no, you're not at the end yet.

"I tried to push him but my strength is not there. I was trying to do anything I could, kick him, shouting for friends and neighbours, 'God help me, please help me, don't let me die!'

"I could hear this boy saying: "Die, die, die! I kill you, I kill you!" and I knew that it was my death there [sic]

"I didn't see anything of his face, just the anger on his mouth, shouting his words: "Die, die! I kill you, I kill you!"

Det Insp Lee Price, of South Manchester CID, said: "For every Walters in this world there are a multitude of people who restore your faith in human nature.

"From the strength and fortitude of the victim to the incredible diligence of officers working against the clock, everyone - with the obvious exception of Walters - came out of this with huge credit.

"The victim Maria showed immense courage to fight him off in the first place and remarkable strength to make such a recovery."