Jealous boyfriend stabs mother-of-three seven times, heads to a pub as she lay bleeding on floor
A man who stabbed his partner seven times in a jealous rage and then stormed off to a pub, leaving her to bleed to death, was ordered to serve 13 years behind bars. Judge Eleri Rees at the Cardiff Crown Court gave 33-year-old Ashley Vaughan a 17-year extended sentence in connection to the vicious attack, and it was mandated that he serve at least two-thirds of a 13-year custodial element before he can become eligible for parole.
According to the Daily Mail, Vaughan has a history of violence and had 14 previous offenses on his criminal record, including violence, drugs, and driving offenses. He was given a 20-week jail term suspended for a year for assaulting the same victim, 29-year-old Kayleigh Evans, previously at her home in July 2017. The assault brought their two-year relationship to an end and a restraining order was taken out in the same case that prevented him from contacting Evans in the future.
However, they reportedly got back together earlier this year and Evans, a healthcare worker and a mother-of-three, confessed she had been out on a date with one of the 33-year-old's friends. This incensed Vaughan, who burst into her home in the village of Pentre, Rhondda, South Wales, with a steak knife and stabbed her under the ribcage, yelling, "F*** my friends, will you?"
She later revealed she did not initially see the knife and that she thought she had been punched. As Vaughan continued stabbing her, she realized she might die there. Desperate, she said she reminded him she had children, but that it only seemed to make him angrier. "You should have thought about that before you started shagging my friend," he shouted.
As the attack continued, Evans is said to have tried calling 999 for help, but Vaughan kept pushing her phone away. He then held something to her neck and whispered, "Go on, grass on me and your f***ing kids are next. If I can't have you, no f***er can."
The Cardiff Crown Court heard that, after the attack, Vaughan left her for dead and went to The Pandy Inn to drink. From there, he went to the Delicious Cafe and handed his bloodstained clothing to the bar staff and asked them to keep it safe. He was later arrested by the authorities at the same pub, with the arresting officers noting he was "drunk and wobbly."
The 29-year-old had somehow managed to alert neighbors to her plight and she was air-lifted to the University Hospital of Wales for life-saving surgery. She had suffered four stab wounds to the heart and chest area, two to her stomach, and one to her arm where she tried to protect herself.
She woke up only three days later and says her "life changed forever" after the attack and that each new day brings "emotional torment" for her. Wales Online reports she has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and struggled to sleep because of chronic flashbacks.
"I’ve lost all my confidence," she said. "I panic when I see something like a steak knife. A wave of emotion hits me and it takes my breath away. It takes me back to the moment when he was leaning over me with that knife. These thoughts will never leave me and now I have to live with this for the rest of my life."
But Vaughan's sentencing is likely to provide her with some respite, at least for the time being. Speaking about the case, detective inspector Arabella Rees said the 33-year-old "deserves" the considerable time he'll spend behind bars. She also paid tribute to Evans' bravery, saying, "I would like to pay tribute to Kayleigh who has shown amazing courage during her recovery and I hope that she will now be able to put this behind her."