Man repeatedly stabbed woman in her bed ‘believing she was possessed by evil spirit’

Abdullahi Tijani, 26, is believed to have been “holding delusional beliefs” when he went into the bedroom of a woman, he had been sharing houses with on October 28 last year.

Manchester Crown Court heard how earlier that day she had asked Tijani to clean up the bathroom before she used it, only to be later woken up as he came into her bedroom.

Prosecutor Chloe Fordham said: “When she asked him what he was doing, he stabbed her.”

Ms Fordham told the court how the stabbing attack left the woman with four stab wounds on her right arm and two on the upper left of her back.

The case was heard at Manchester Crown Court(Image: Anthony Moss)

Police were called and found the victim crying at the top of the stairs.

She said: “When the police asked what happened, she said ‘I was asleep, and he just came in and stabbed me.’”

A kitchen blade was found in the house with a seven-inch blade that appeared to have come off, though it did not seem to have become detached during the stabbing itself.

Tijanii was arrested and Ms Fordham said that on being examined by psychiatrists he appeared to be “acutely mentally unwell”, possibly with paranoid schizophrenia.

Ms Fordham said that the 26-year-old appeared to have been “holding delusional beliefs” that the woman had been “possession by an evil spirit” and was intending to use “black magic”.

Tijani, of Abbey Road, Tyldesley, was charged with attempted murder.

But on what would have been the first day of his trial this week he pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of section 18, wounding with intent, which the prosecution accepted.

The court heard evidence from psychiatrists who said that Tijani appeared to be suffering from a form of “paranoid schizophrenia”.

Robert Wyn Jones, defending, said that Tijani had come to the UK from Nigeria with no mental health issues aiming to study for a master’s degree in chemistry at the University of Hull.

He said that he had hoped to provide a better life for himself and for his family back in Nigeria before his mental health had taken a turn for the worst.

Judge Timothy Smith said that having heard evidence from four psychiatrists he was satisfied that Tijani was suffering from paranoid schizophrenia.

He said this had given him “grandiose delusions” and convinced him that his victim was “possessed by evil spirits possessing black magic”.

Judge Smith said that Tijani’s victim believed that “you did not know what you were doing, you were unwell.”

ALSO READ: Fears witnesses could be ‘denied justice’ as trials set to move from Bolton

ALSO READ: Victims of crime ‘denied justice’ amid staggering court case backlogs

ALSO READ: ‘Our system is crumbling’ as ‘vast cuts’ see nearly half of Bolton trials delayed

He sentenced Tijani to a restriction order under section 41 of the Mental Health Act, meaning he cannot be discharged from hospital until deemed safe to himself and the public.

Speaking after the hearing Detective Constable James Cupitt, from Greater Manchester Police’s Criminal Investigation Team in Wigan, said: “In October 2024, our officers responded to reports of a man attacking a woman with a knife, causing three significant wounds on her arm and back. 

“Thankfully, the victim was able to receive urgent treatment for her wounds and begin her journey back to full health after this traumatic incident.

“This was a shocking attack that happened in the victim’s home, and it is our hope the result of today’s sentence will bring her a sense of closure, knowing the perpetrator is receiving the treatment he needs and is able to return to society in time.”

Source – INDIA TV