Pregnant woman survives stabbing by father-in-law

12 hours ago

Tony Fisher

BBC News, Hertfordshire

Reporting fromStevenage

Sasha Field with her son Cole, who she protected by holding a bin over her stomach when she was attacked

Supplied Sasha Field with long black hair, who is smiling as she is holding a baby who is also smiling with his tongue sticking out. — Sasha Field with her son Cole, who she protected by holding a bin over her stomach when she was attacked

A pregnant woman has described being stabbed by her father-in-law in an unprovoked attack at her place of work as "mind-blowing".

Sasha Field, 38, from Stevenage, Hertfordshire, was stabbed in her wrist and her chest by Bryan Field in February 2024.

Field, of Albion Road in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, also stabbed a man during the attack in an office building of a scaffolding firm in Todds Green, Stevenage.

The 64-year-old, who was looking for his estranged wife at the time, has been jailed for 26 years for the attempted murder of the man, six years for wounding with intent against his daughter-in-law and 20 months for possession of a bladed article.

Sasha Field said because she was pregnant she had a local anaesthetic and was awake for the operation to repair her tendons and severed nerves

Tony Fisher/BBC Scars on the arm of a woman where a knife has pierced through her wrist. There is a small tattoo on her wrist. — Sasha Field said because she was pregnant she had a local anaesthetic and was awake for the operation to repair her tendons and severed nerves

Ms Field, who was 20-weeks pregnant at the time, said she happened to borrow her mother-in-law's car to go to work.

When Field saw it outside the office he mistakenly believed his wife, who had just filed for divorce, was in the building.

"All of a sudden the door burst open and Bryan is standing there with a black bin bag," Ms Field said.

He asked where his wife was and began throwing out her belongings from the bag on to the floor.

He then lunged "towards my employee, punching him and now I know he was stabbing him".

She added: "The knife was in the bag but concealed in cloth the police said."

He accused Ms Field of being the reason why his wife had left him and "then he made a strike towards to what I thought was my face," she said.

"I put my arm up in defence and the knife went through my wrist and then into my left nipple.

"He then pushed me to the ground and kicked me and stamped on my head as he didn't have the knife anymore as it had broken in two."

She added: "I am in no doubt that had that knife not broken he would have stabbed me to death."

"He definitely could have murdered his own grandson."

Sasha Field said her father-in-law was fully aware she was 20-weeks pregnant at the time of the attack

Tony Fisher/BBC Sasha Field with black long hair looking at the camera. She is in front of a wooden fence and is wearing a pink top. — Sasha Field said her father-in-law was fully aware she was 20-weeks pregnant at the time of the attack

Ms Field said she did not realise she had been stabbed until she was in the ambulance afterwards.

She said: "I did not think about myself - I just kept thinking of the baby."

Her baby son, Cole, is now doing well.

She described the attack as "mind-blowing" as she had never had an argument with Field, who "was out that day to hurt somebody and when he realised his wife was not there he took it out on me".