Stabbing suspect ‘believed woman worked at GCHQ’
A MAN tried to knife to death a US spy he believed was working at GCHQ as she left a leisure centre, a court has heard.
Joshua Bowles, 29, has been charged with attempted murder for the attack at the sports centre in Cheltenham on March 9 following an investigation by counter-terror detectives.
Prosecutors said he held views about the type of work he thought she did at GCHQ, which is situated three miles from the scene of the attack.
Mr Bowles is alleged to have brought two knives with him for the attack before “repeatedly stabbing” and punching the victim.
The woman, who is referred to in charges only by the code number “99230”, remains in hospital in a stable condition.
Yesterday at Westminster magistrates’ court, Mr Bowles, who had a brown beard and short brown hair, appeared for a brief hearing dressed in a grey tracksuit.
He spoke only to confirm his name, address, and date of birth. He was not asked to enter a plea.
The court heard Mr Bowles is also charged with causing actual bodily harm to another person, Alex Fuentes, who confronted him in the car park of the leisure centre after the attack.
Kathryn Selby, prosecuting, said that Mr Bowles should be dealt with under the terrorism protocol because he allegedly targeted the woman as he believed she worked for GCHQ.
The defendant, of the Up Hatherley suburb of Cheltenham, was remanded in custody by District Judge Nina Tempia before a hearing at the Old Bailey on March 31.
After the charges, Detective Chief Superintendent Olly Wright, head of Counter Terrorism Policing South East, said: “We would encourage people not to speculate on the specific circumstances surrounding this incident.
“We believe this was an isolated incident and there is no information to suggest any wider threat to the local community. We must now let the judicial process take place.”