Coventry man jailed for brutal axe attack
Police say his attack was 'unprovoked and vicious'
Last updated 8th Jan 2023
A man who attacked a woman with an axe and a knife at a hairdressers in Coventry has been jailed for 31 years.
Bogdan Serban was sentenced at Coventry Crown Court on 6 January after being found guilty of the attempted murder of a woman in the city on 3 June last year.
The targeted attack saw 42-year-old Serban enter the salon and attack the woman, causing injuries to her face and both arms as well as a fractured eye socket.
He was charged with attempted murder and found guilty by a jury after previously pleading guilty to Section 18 wounding and two counts of possession of an offensive weapon.
When asked about the knife in interview, Serban said he stored it in his car boot and used it for peeling apples.
On the axe, he said he had bought it three or four days earlier and had not previously used it.
Officers tried to show him the injuries the woman he attacked sustained, but he refused to look and said he could not remember hitting her with the axe.
He told officers he had wanted to call the police, but was scared he would be arrested.
DC Sunita Sharma, from the Complex Investigations Team in Coventry, said: "This was a violent and unprovoked attack and we welcome this sentencing.
"The attack caused life-changing injuries and we hope the victim and her family can take some comfort knowing justice has been done."