THIS is the chilling moment a husband who stabbed his wife told officers “I’m not bothered” during his arrest.
Mark Taylor, 57, stabbed his wife so severely the knife snapped before picking up a second blade and continuing the attack at their home in Derbyshire.
This is the shocking moment Mark Taylor was arrested after going on the run with his teenage son[/caption]
The vile abuser told officers ‘I’m not bothered’ after he had left his wife for dead[/caption]
Taylor was sentenced to 23 years behind bars[/caption]
He locked his wife – who suffered several wounds but survived the “ferocious” assault – in their home before fleeing with their son on February 15.
Disturbing police bodycam footage showed the moment cops arrested Taylor in his car along with their son.
Taylor can be heard saying to the arresting officer: “I’m not bothered, that’s it now, it’s a life sentence.”
The couple’s traumatised boy – who had witnessed the heinous attack – heartbreakingly asked officers “whether his mother was still alive”.
Taylor his victim to hand over her phone under the cruel guise he would call for help following the horror.
But instead Taylor told her “this will be the end of you” before locking her in the Baslow house.
The court heard Taylor’s wife told him she was “dying” to try and stop him – while their autistic son “pleaded with her not to die”.
Taylor callously left her bleeding out on the floor and went on the run.
Taylor’s wife bravely tried to call for help through the letterbox and dragged herself up the stairs.
She managed to attract the attention of a dog walker by shouting out of a bedroom window.
Emergency services raced her to hospital for treatment after suffering stab wounds to her neck, arm, chest and stomach.
Cheshire Police tracked Taylor’s car down using automatic number plate recognition cameras.
Officers captured him driving around Derbyshire before heading across the border into Cheshire.
He was apprehended later that day, 60 miles away, by Cheshire Police and charged with attempted murder.
Taylor denied the charge before being found guilty on August 15 following a trial at Derby Crown Court.
The 57-year-old, of Baslow, was sentenced to 23 years behind bars with a with a five-year extended sentence at the same court yesterday.
He was also handed an indefinite restraining order preventing him from having any contact with his wife and son.
Sentencing, Judge Martin Hurst told Taylor: “You made a concerted effort to murder your wife, stabbing her four times with two kitchen knives.
“You took significant steps to ensure she could not secure help and drove away, leaving her to die.
“If the injury to her chest had been more serious she would have died – you followed through a pre-formed plan to kill by taking the two telephones and locking her in and driving away.
“It is of course a fact that you will lose contact with your son but that is what you feared when you decided to take this course – you hoped your wife would die and you would then be his only carer.
“You hoped to be able to demonstrate to social services your love for him and you would have hoped that he would have been put in your care without the interfering presence of your wife.
“You did everything in your power short of a further attack to ensure that she died.”
The judge added: “She was trapped, dying as she thought, without a mobile or landline handset.”
In a statement read out to the court Taylor’s now ex-wife wrote: “I have suffered and our lives have been truly devastated. I cannot return to our home due to the trauma.
“I am suffering from severe anxiety and depression – (my son) has regular flashbacks and nightmares.
“He is scared in school during cookery classes because there are knives there.
“He cries at the situation we are in and says his dad has ruined his life and says he will never forget what he saw.
“I cannot believe he left me on the floor dying after more than 30 years of marriage.”
Temporary Detective Constable Amber Holmes, of Derbyshire Police, said after the case: “This was a ferocious and sustained attack by Taylor on his wife who genuinely feared she was going to die.
“After this incident she disclosed to police that she had been suffering from domestic abuse at the hands of her husband for around 40 years including a previous incident involving a knife.
“It’s clear from the history and the actions of Taylor on this day that he posed a very real threat to his wife.
“I am pleased therefore that the judge has recognised the danger posed by Taylor with this extended sentence.”
How you can get help
Women's Aid has this advice for victims and their families:
- Always keep your phone nearby.
- Get in touch with charities for help, including the Women’s Aid live chat helpline and services such as SupportLine.
- If you are in danger, call 999.
- Familiarise yourself with the Silent Solution, reporting abuse without speaking down the phone, instead dialing “55”.
- Always keep some money on you, including change for a pay phone or bus fare.
- If you suspect your partner is about to attack you, try to go to a lower-risk area of the house – for example, where there is a way out and access to a telephone.
- Avoid the kitchen and garage, where there are likely to be knives or other weapons. Avoid rooms where you might become trapped, such as the bathroom, or where you might be shut into a cupboard or other small space.
If you are a victim of domestic abuse, SupportLine is open Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 6pm to 8pm on 01708 765200. The charity’s email support service is open weekdays and weekends during the crisis – [email protected].
Women’s Aid provides a live chat service – available weekdays from 8am-6pm and weekends 10am-6pm.
You can also call the freephone 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.
