Terrified mum barricaded daughters in station waiting room as man went on knife rampage

A mum was forced to barricade her terrified young children successful a bid presumption waiting country erstwhile Ronald Whelan attacked a chap rider astatine Blundellsands and Crosby bid station

A terrified mum was forced to barricade her children wrong a train station waiting country portion a knife attack unfolded connected the platform.

Ronald Whelan caused a chap passenger's manus to determination with humor erstwhile helium brandished the limb aft a enactment implicit the antheral leaving his container connected a seat.

The grandad, whose lad is simply a nonrecreational footballer, said the incidental was the "worst mistake helium has ever made".

It was heard successful Liverpool Crown Court however Muhammed Uddin boarded the Southport bound work astatine Liverpool South Parkway successful Merseyside soon aft 1pm connected August 2 this twelvemonth travelling to Blundellsands and Crosby bid station. He was sitting connected the bid with his container connected the spot adjacent to him erstwhile Whelan entered the train, astatine which constituent "words were exchanged astir the container connected the seat", the Liverpool ECHO reports.

CCTV footage past showed him seating himself beside the complainant, who subsequently moved to different portion of the carriage aft seemingly calling the 59-year-old a "d***head". The defendant, of nary fixed address, past exited astatine Blundellsands and Crosby up of Mr Uddin.

Philip Clemo, prosecuting, described however Whelan was thereafter seen passing done a gross straight successful beforehand of his victim, astatine which signifier helium pulled a weapon from his pouch and turned astir to marque a "lunging motion" towards him. The complainant reacted by grabbing clasp of the six-inch blade, leaving him with a chopped to his hand.

The tribunal besides heard that different passenger, Megan Rimmer, "barricaded herself and her 2 babies successful a waiting country until she was definite the suspect had gone" earlier she went to assistance of Mr Uddin, helping to stem his bleeding. Mr Clemo said that the altercation "took spot successful the shadiness of the Southport killings " lone days earlier and had caused "considerable distress".

Ms Rimmer antecedently told the ECHO : "I was getting the bid backmost from municipality with my 2 small girls, who are 5 and three. When you get off, there's a small gross by the car parkland wherever there's a small spot of a bottleneck if it's rather busy. As they were going through, helium conscionable turned circular retired of nowhere. There was nary altercation, thing happened, helium conscionable turned circular and lunged astatine him with a knife.

"Muhammed enactment his manus out, truthful the weapon went into his manus and determination was conscionable humor everywhere. He conscionable started shouting 'he's got a knife, he's got a knife'. I conscionable turned circular the pram with my daughters in, went into the waiting room, shoved them into the waiting country and stood barricaded crossed the doorway successful lawsuit the weapon feline came that way, but helium didn't.

"There wasn't immoderate altercation successful the physique up. Muhammed was successful daze afterwards. I didn't spot anything. They were conscionable going done the aforesaid gross and the achromatic feline conscionable turned circular and lunged astatine him with a knife.

"By the clip I'd enactment my girls into the waiting country and made definite the feline with the weapon was going obscurity adjacent them, everyone other had conscionable cleared off. There was 1 miss who stayed successful the waiting country but didn't spell anyplace adjacent for a fewer minutes, but everyone other conscionable left.

"He was conscionable stood determination with humor pouring retired of his hand. It looked truly atrocious and determination was humor everywhere. I had a keffiyeh scarf connected my head, truthful I took that 1 disconnected and wrapped it circular his manus and was telling him to compression it to effort and halt the bleeding. He called 999 straightaway. I felt truly horrified astir it to beryllium honest, and conscionable bittersweet and scared. It was truly upsetting, I didn't expect that. No 1 expects it successful their area."

In a connection which was work retired to the tribunal connected his behalf, Mr Uddin elaborate however helium had suffered from sleeping difficulties and nightmares since the attack. He besides outlined however helium had been forced to springiness up his occupation owed to his newfound fearfulness of taking nationalist transport, adding: "I support replaying the onslaught implicit and implicit successful my mind.

"I find myself reasoning astir it constantly. I fearfulness that the flashbacks volition ne'er spell distant and it is thing I volition person to enactment up with."

Whelan was arrested 5 days aft the battle arsenic helium entered a gym. This led to him being alerted to the NCA, being a "wanted antheral successful France successful narration to the importation of implicit 100kg of precocious purity cocaine from Colombia".

Upon being released from custody, having been held connected remand since the assault, helium is expected to beryllium detained again and brought earlier Westminster Magistrates' Court successful bid to look extradition proceedings. Whelan maintains that helium "felt threatened" by the casualty.

Louise Santamera, defending, told the tribunal that her lawsuit was a joined father-of-two with 1 grandchild, with 1 of his sons being a nonrecreational footballer, and said: "He unequivocally accepts that helium should not person done what helium did. He recovered it precise hard to recognize wherefore helium had followed him disconnected the train.

"The complainant appears astatine his enarthrosis connected the level and mutters to him. He maintains that helium did what helium did to frighten to complainant distant from him. He did not privation to origin him immoderate injury."

Ms Santamera added of Mr Uddin's behaviour connected the train: "He was observed by others making violative remarks. The suspect does not respond to this. I observe the complainant looking crossed astatine the suspect connected a fig of occasions.

"The suspect has said to maine that it is the worst mistake helium has made. He accepts that helium misjudged the concern and makes nary excuse for his behaviour that day."

Whelan admitted wounding without intent and possession of a bladed nonfiction successful a nationalist place. Wearing a airy grey fleece and sporting grey hairsbreadth successful the dock connected Monday, helium was handed a 15-month imprisonment suspended for 18 months positive 150 hours of unpaid enactment and a rehabilitation enactment request of up to 25 days.

Sentencing, Recorder Ben Douglas-Jones KC said: "It is astir fortunate for you that helium was not injured further. There is nary proposition astatine each that helium was threatening you. However, I judge that you felt threatened by his beingness and the information that helium was adjacent to you.

"That is wherefore you drew the weapon and acted successful the mode that is seen connected CCTV. That is nary excuse for what you did, but it is an explanation. I carnivore successful caput your property and the information that you person been retired of occupation with the constabulary for 40 years oregon so. It is highly bittersweet to spot you backmost earlier the tribunal each these years later."