Jailed: Woman who stabbed and tied up victim
OFFENDER STOLE BANK CARD AND CASH IN TERRIFYING ROBBERY
A DANGEROUS offender stabbed her vulnerable victim and then tied her to an electric reclining chair while she took her bank card to withdraw cash.
Drunk Zara Jade, 54, attacked the complainant at her flat in Halifax on August 8 last year after making demands for cash.
Prosecutor Lydia Pearce told Bradford Crown Court on Monday how Jade stabbed her victim in the arm and abdomen while she was sat on their knee in the chair.
The wounds were described as being “superficial” and the victim was able to use a cloth to stem the flow of blood, but Jade then took some cash and demanded the PIN for the complainant’s bank card.
Miss Pearce said Jade then used tights to tie the complainant by her ankles, knees, chest and arms into the chair.
Jade tilted the chair back and turned off the power supply before she left and used the bank card to withdraw £300.
It is thought the complainant was in the chair for a few hours until Jade returned and untied her. The police were contacted after a district nurse saw the healing wounds during a visit a few days later and Jade was arrested.
Jade, of no fixed abode, admitted offences of wounding with intent to do grievous bodily harm, robbery, fraud and false imprisonment.
Deputy Circuit Judge Timothy Clayson
was told that back in 1988 Jade had been locked up for five years for rape and other sexual offences and in 2013 she had been jailed again for another sexual matter.
Richard Canning, defending, told the court his client’s main focus now was to complete her gender transition, but she knew what she did was wrong and would be punished.
He said Jade had struggled with alcohol and had made “bad decisions” while in drink.
Judge Clayson said Jade’s victim had serious health issues and was particularly vulnerable.
He said the complainant had been helpless and unable to move or contact anyone after being tied in the chair.
The judge that the next morning Jade was apologetic and said she felt mortified by what she had done. He said the offences showed that Jade was willing to behave in a “callous and cruel” way towards a vulnerable victim.
The judge added that her previous convictions were for serious offences and he concluded that she was a dangerous offender. She was given a 12-year extended prison sentence.
Jade will have to serve two-thirds of a nine-year jail sentence before being considered for release by the Parole Board and she will then be subject to an extended licence period of three years.
Judge Clayson also made her subject to a 12-year restraining order which bans her from contacting the complainant directly or indirectly.