Knifeman tried to kidnap victim
TWO workmen prevented a woman being bundled into a car after hearing her scream in terror as she was stabbed.
The heroic men rushed to the woman’s aid and blocked the path of her would-be kidnapper, Shah Sami.
They calmly talked him down – allowing the victim to run to safety.
After 26-year-old Sami got back in the car and drove off, the workmen took down the registration plate and called Nottinghamshire Police to the incident in Hanley Street in Nottingham city centre.
The force’s knife crime team tracked down the car in Nottingham Road a short time later and followed it through to Broxtowe Lane where it took a turn into a dead end. They arrested Sami and recovered the vehicle which contained knives, gloves and other evidence.
He was charged with attempted kidnap, wounding with intent and possession of a knife in a public place in connection with the incident, which occurred at around 10.40am on May 22.
Sami, of Wellington Way in Tower Hamlets, London, was sentenced to four years and six months in prison at Nottingham Crown Court on Thursday.
It turned out the victim had fled from London to get away from Sami, but he continued to harass her.
He then contacted her under the guise of a solicitor who stated she was required to attend a police station regarding her case. Through text messages, he arranged for her to meet a vehicle he said to be a taxi which would take her to a police station.
But unknown to her, Sami was hiding in the vehicle and jumped out and threatened her with a knife. She resisted and he stabbed her in the stomach and cut her arm during the struggle.
Her injuries were not lifethreatening or altering.
Detective Sergeant Adam Taylor, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “We really have these two workmen to thank for saving this young woman’s life. If she had got in that car, I’m convinced something bad would have happened to her.”