Man convicted after stabbing two men through car window in Quorn

A 24-year-old man has been found guilty of stabbing two men through an open car window in Quorn before fleeing the scene and evading police for four days. He will be sentenced in December.

A man who stabbed two people through a car window in Quorn before going on the run has been convicted following a trial at Leicester Crown Court.

Cohen Barley, 24, of Hawthorn Road, Mountsorrel, was found guilty on Tuesday 27 October of causing grievous bodily harm with intent and possessing a knife or sharp pointed article.

The attack happened on Station Road shortly after 6.15pm on 23 April, when Barley approached a parked car occupied by two men, both aged 24, and stabbed them through an open window.

Both victims managed to escape from the vehicle and run down the road. One suffered a serious stab wound to his hand and an injury to his stomach, while the second sustained a puncture wound to the side of his body. Both were treated in hospital and have since been discharged.

A third person inside the car escaped without injury.

Police were called by members of the public who witnessed the incident, but Barley had already fled in a nearby vehicle by the time officers arrived.

The victims were able to identify the person they believed was responsible. Detectives subsequently established Barley was a suspect, but he evaded police for four days, moving between addresses and staying in hotels using other people's names.

Following further enquiries, officers traced him to an address in Quorn, where he was arrested.

Detective Constable Amy Aplin, the officer in the case, described the incident as an unprovoked attack in broad daylight on a busy street.

She said Barley's actions left two people injured, one seriously, and warned that the consequences could have been even more severe if the victims had not managed to escape.

DC Aplin also thanked members of the public who came to the victims' aid and helped before paramedics arrived.

She said the conviction followed persistent investigative work and evidence from the victims and witnesses.

Barley is due to be sentenced at Leicester Crown Court on 17 December.