This is the horrific moment a knifeman stabs a random homeless man in the neck as he slept outside Liverpool Street Station.
Izet Mehmed, was fast asleep in a doorway shelter, when Norwegian national Egidijus Kotovas, 29, slashed his neck “without any warning” in the early hours of the morning on August 24 last year.
Shocking CCTV footage shows the moment Kotovas spots his victim and ducks into the Blomfield Street doorway to stab the rough sleeper repeatedly before fleeing the scene and wiping his bloody knife on some nearby cardboard.
The victim stumbled to get help and was found by two uniformed officers, Police Constable Amber Rose Kenny and Police Constable George Williams, lying face down outside a cafe on Bishopsgate, with serious injuries to his neck.
The officers immediately administered first aid before London Ambulance Service and London Air Ambulance arrived at the scene. Mr Mehmed was rushed to the Royal London Hospital with life-threatening injuries.
Just minutes after the stabbing, Kotovas was seen returning to the scene of the stabbing before cycling out of the City.
Within 24 hours of the attack, officers arrested Kotovas when he was spotted at around 2am on August 25, once again at the scene of the crime on his bike.
After being read his rights Kotovas denied the attack telling officers: “I think this is a mistake”.
Kotovas had been in the UK for three years at the time of his violent assault on Mr Mehmed who still suffers physically from the attack but is now living in permanent accommodation.
He was jailed for life at Southwark Crown Court, after he was found guilty of attempted murder and two counts of possession of a bladed weapon.
DCI Jim Halkett, at the City of London Police, said: “This horrific incident kept me awake, as without doubt had he not been caught, Kotovas would have gone on to attack more vulnerable victims.
“The quick apprehension of Kovotas within 24 hours was down to diligent and meticulous work by our officers. Through DNA profiling and an overwhelming amount of evidence, we were able to secure this conviction and put this highly dangerous individual behind bars.
“This was a savage and unprovoked attack on a vulnerable member of the public. I would also like to praise the quick response from our officers first at the scene, who administered immediate first aid, preventing this from being a murder investigation.”
Southwark Crown Court sentenced Kotovas to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 14 years and 242 days.
He will then be subject to licence conditions for the rest of his life.
For the possession of two knives, Kotovas was given nine months for each offence, to be served concurrently.
In sentencing, the court also took into account the vulnerability of Kovotas’ victim and his previous convictions in Lithuania.
