Sunderland teenager wounded neighbour after 3am row with his own sister

Mathew Lindsay was having a heated argument with his sister when a neighbour turned up at his door at 3am on January 7 to ask the pair to keep the noise down.

The 19-year-old defendant became aggressive and punched his victim in the face before making threats to kill the man.

Lindsay then went back into the house, on Deepdene Road, in Seaburn, Sunderland, and picked up a six-inch kitchen knife before attempting to slash the victim in the face.

Prosecutor Jessica Slaughter told Newcastle Crown Court: "This is essentially a neighbourly dispute over noise which led to the defendant attacking the complainant with a knife.

"He came out of the house with the knife which was six inches in length.

"The victim was aware of what was happening and stepped back but it caught his left eye.

"Luckily the injury seemed to be superficial. A police officer described the injury as superficial, one inch in length but it was very close to his eye.

"The defendant made threats and said he was going to kill him and ‘knife him up’."

The court heard how it was the defendant's mother who called the police following the terrifying incident.

The told the police that there was a scuffle and admitted telling the victim 'you don't know who I am'.

He admitted charges of unlawful wounding and possession of an offensive weapon.

John Wilkinson, defending, said: "It is very rare that someone reads such glowing references in relation to a young man.

"He left school at the age of 16 and went straight to work in the insurance sector.

"On October 7, 2016, he was the victim of an assault in which caused him to strike his head on the pavement - which caused him a bleed on the brain.

"He is a young man who sustained this injury that has an effect on him and he is has found it difficult to come to terms with that.

"The injury is very much at the root as to why he behaved the way he did on that night.

"He accepts he had taken drink that he should not have done.

"He is finding it very difficult to adjust to his new mental state, that is really through no fault of his own."

In a statement to the court, Lindsay said: "I totally regret what I did that night. My actions were totally disgusting.”

"No one should have to go through what I did to that man."

Recorder John Aitken sentenced the defendant, of Deepdene Road, Sunderland, to 12 months suspended for two years.

The Recorder said: "On this night you were arguing with your sister and the neighbour came round to complain of the noise.

"For his trouble you punched him in the face and after that you went and got a knife and you went to stick it in his eye.

"Very lucky for him and very lucky for you he sustained a surface injury. It could have been life changing or it could have killed him.

"Your family are now moving away from their home because of this.

"You have lost your job, your income and your career as result of what you did.

"You suffered some form of traumatic brain injury that means this has affected your inhibitions."

He was also ordered to pay £1,000 compensation and a two-year restraining order was imposed.