'Hold her head while I chop it off' - the chilling words of Preston machete attackers

Kyle Garth left his victim scarred for life after raining down multiple blows to the head and body as frightened neighbours looked on in horror.

Judge Heather Lloyd branded the former squaddie “a dangerous offender” and said the woman was “lucky she isn’t dead or much more seriously injured.”

She sent Garth to prison for seven years and two months and ordered he should serve at least two-thirds of that sentence before a parole board could decide if he is safe to be released.

A second man, Patrick Clifford, who gave him the fearsome weapon and was with him when he attacked his victim in Ingol, was also jailed for 13 months for his part in the horrific incident.

Judge Lloyd told both men: “Why anyone would need a machete I do not know. There can never be any rational reason to possess one.

“It does not need to be explained how dangerous it is. This case exemplifies the concern that most people have about the carrying of weapons.

“Serious injuries occur, if not death, because those carrying them are (either) out of control or angry.”

And she added that the attack had been “a prolonged and persistent assault . . . with a highly dangerous weapon.”

Preston Crown Court was told an eyewitness who phoned 999 during the attack told police one of the men had shouted: “Hold her head while I chop it off.”

Garth, 37, of Beech Grove, Ashton admitted wounding with intent. Both he and Clifford, 33, of Elliott Street, Ribbleton, pleaded guilty to possessing a bladed article.

The court heard that Garth had previous convictions for violence including an attempted armed robbery in 2010 in Ingol where a gun was discharged.

One night in November 2023 he went round to a flat in Sylvancroft, also in Ingol, after being invited there by the woman. When he arrived he found there was another man at the property.

They spent time drinking together until a violent row broke out when Garth insulted the woman. All three were said to have grabbed kitchen knives and there was a scuffle before the other man threw him down the stairs.

Garth walked away, but the woman followed him saying the other man had been “out of order.” He was then heard to shout “just you wait.”

When Garth went to his ex-partner’s home nearby he was said to have been bleeding from a hand wound.

The victim was later watching from the balcony of her flat when she saw Garth and Clifford walking towards the building. The court heard that the man could have been the intended target, but he had left by this time.

The row spilled onto the stairs where the woman said she was struck first to the back of the head with “a sharp metal object.” She said her face was full of blood and she was unable to see properly.

She was then struck again on the head and then a third time while she was on the floor outside the flat. She couldn’t remember what Clifford did, although she recalled seeing him with the machete.

As the attack continued she said she lost consciousness for a short period. She remembered banging on neighbours’ doors pleading for help.

An eyewitness called 999 and police who quickly arrived found her covered in blood, with significant injuries to her head, face, nose and hands. She was “extremely confused and distressed.”

Officers bandaged her wounds before paramedics arrived and took her to the Royal Preston Hospital where she was treated by the trauma team. A plastic surgeon was called in to operate on her wounds.

She was found to have a catalogue of lacerations, abrasions and bruises to her scalp, forehead, nose, fingers on each hand, both thighs, her left shin and a foot. The scars on her face were still clearly visible six months later.

Police were told Garth and Clifford may have been involved, although none of those who witnessed the attack were prepared to give statements.

When Clifford was arrested he gave “no comment” answers in interview. Garth was picked up and was found to have traces of the woman’s blood underneath his fingernails.

In a victim statement to the court the woman said she had been so frightened that the defendants would return that she had to give up the tenancy of her flat and move. Her sleep had been affected, she suffered memory loss and she was waiting for an appointment to be assessed for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

She said that her facial scars were “an ongoing reminder of the violence used against her that night.”

The court was told Garth had spent six years in the Army, serving with the Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment. He had two spells in Afghanistan in 2009 and 2010 and had later been diagnosed with PTSD from which he had struggled for several years.

He also suffered from depression and anxiety and had developed symptoms of paranoia, possibly due to excessive alcohol and drug use. He was still suffering from flashbacks from his time in Afghanistan.

Defence barrister David Bentley said: “He describes his life as a mess prior to being in custody (on remand) and wants to try and turn his life around. He says the way he was living was unacceptable.”

Mr Bentley said the events that night were sparked by a social gathering at the woman’s flat involving drink and drugs which led to violence. He said that when he left the premises after being ejected he should have stayed away. “But he returned with a weapon, and that he regrets.”

Mark Stephenson, defending Clifford, said his client had been “unceremoniously attacked in a public house (that day) having caused no provocation whatsoever.”

Later he had gone out with Garth armed with a machete. “He doesn’t carry it very far and he doesn’t have it in his hands when (they) got to the place.

“He doesn’t give any violence to the complainant – he said he tried to pull Garth off (the woman). He helped her to get to his sister’s house.

“He realised he shouldn’t be on the street with a machete. He realised he was making a grave error by holding a machete and so gave it to the person he was with (Garth).

“His big mistake was arming himself with a machete and taking the machete onto the streets of Preston. The best course of action was to get rid of the machete. He wasn’t to know what someone else would do with it.”

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Judge Lloyd said the third man may have been the intended target, but because he had already left the scene Garth attacked the woman.

She said Garth had been “totally unconcerned for the welfare of your victim.” The woman had been “outnumbered” and “she didn’t stand a chance.” He had, she said, “demonstrated little remorse” for his crime.

And she told Clifford: “You provided the machete and you were at the scene when Garth committed the assault. When you thought better of carrying it you didn’t turn round and go home, you gave it to Garth.”