Marina Afonina, now 51, from Northampton, met Ioan Budea in 2006. The following year, they moved in together. But Ioan didn’t like to work, and Marina paid for everything. Years passed and he was no different. Ioan started to drink heavily, and the pair constantly argued. In July 2022, Marina ended things. But the following month, Ioan turned up at the hospital where she worked, drunk. He followed Marina as she walked home. He stabbed her eight times in her left side, shoulder, arm and breast. Thankfully, a stranger intervened and saved Marina’s life. In July 2023, Ioan was found guilty of assault by beating and attempted murder. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison with a further three years on license at Northampton Crown Court.
With the full moon looming behind him, this polar bear nestles down for the night .
HUDDLING under a leaf, a pair of adorable Javan scops owls take shelter from the rain .
CLIMBING, falling and tugging on his weary mum, this little orangutan is up to all kinds of trouble .
DINING under the stars, this restaurant takes you back in time - inside an ancient cave .
LUMINOUS green rocks could easily be a beach from Superman's homeland of Krypton .
A photographer from the United Arab Emirates travelled to Pakistan where he captured the lives of local people in a series of expressive portraits .
THESE LOVE BIRDS can’t keep their beaks off each other as they share a very public display of affection .
THIS may look like a dolphin through jumping hoops, but it is in fact nothing more than a clever 3D pencil drawing .
TUGGING on the wing of his sibling, this needy owl is after some attention .
From a floating jelly fish to a relaxed seal, Britain’s unappreciated beach life is captured above and below the water .