Thug jailed after stabbing two people at random - West Midlands

A thug who stabbed two people at random in the West Midlands has been jailed, following a British Transport Police investigation.

Wayne Marsh, 24, and of High Street, Dudley, pleaded guilty to two counts of Grievous Bodily Harm and possession of an offensive weapon at Wolverhampton Crown Court on 13 October.

The judge sentenced him to three years and eight months in prison.

On Friday 20^th November at around 9pm, the two victims, a 21 and 23-year-old man, were chatting together on a footpath close to the Hawthorns station.

Marsh walked past them, before returning minutes later and launching a vicious and completely unprovoked attack. He then boarded a train to Cradley Heath where he changed his clothes in the toilet.

The two victims managed to make it into a nearby shop to raise the alarm and an ambulance was called.

One of the victims who was stabbed twice received a puncture wound to the chest and back, the other victim received a puncture wound to the chest.

A week later, officers were conducting anniversary patrols at the station when they identified Marsh from CCTV images which had been circulated. He was quickly arrested and taken to custody.

In his police interview Marsh was asked about his knowledge of the incident. He claimed he was heavily under the influence of heroin at the time and told officers: “I can’t even remember being on the station…it’s a f****** gobsmacker.”

Detective Inspector Ray Ascott said: “This was a shocking and completely unprovoked attack on two young men minding their own business.

“Marsh is clearly a dangerous individual and it is thanks to the vigilance of our officers only a week later that he was apprehended at the very scene of the crime.

“Thankfully incidents like this are extremely rare on the railway, and we have proactive operations day and night across the network to deter violent offending. If you ever have any concerns while travelling, please text us discreetly on 61016 or call 999 in an emergency.”