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.
MEET the little lion of suburbia with a mane that makes him look like a mini-king of the jungle .
A project to create an underwater tribute to the stone Moai statues of Easter Island ended in disaster when 15 replica structures were destroyed after toppling from a boat and into the sea .
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TENNIS was a game made for three according to the first Victorian rule book .
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A lazy otter finds the ideal spot to soak up the sun and sleep off his lunch .
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FLEXING his muscles and staring straight at his opponent, this bodybuilding squirrel is the nuts .
A couple celebrated tying the knot with a spectacular Alice in Wonderland-themed wedding reception .
THIS alien-like bug would look more at home in outer-space but it can actually be found wriggling around here on Earth .
SOARING through the air, a hungry white-tailed kite prepares to snatch a vole from his mother’s claws .