A housing association tenant has slammed his landlords – saying they ignored his pleas to be moved away from a “violent” neighbour who he claims went on to stab him in the back of the head.
William Baxter, 48, said Genesis Housing Group, which owns his home in Beaumont Court in Sylvester Road, Sudbury, failed to safeguard him from his alleged attacker, despite him repeatedly flagging up his behaviour. According to Mr Baxter, the neighbour once chased a woman down the hall with a knife shouting “I am going to kill you”.
He said: “We (residents) have been telling the housing association that this man is dangerous for quite some time now and what did they do about it? Nothing.
“Now I have been stabbed they are willing to lend an ear but where were they beforehand? Why do I have to get stabbed before they decided to do anything? It’s completely ridiculous.”
Another neighbour, who wishes to remain anonymous, told the Times that the man kept harassing her.
“I had to take desperate measures because he just would not leave me alone,” she said.
“I’ve told Genesis about his behaviour on numerous occasions but they’ve just swept it under the carpet.”
She continued: “It is too late for safeguarding. I want to move out.”
Mr Baxter was stabbed and cut on his thumb with a serrated knife after allegedly confronting the man about playing his music at high volume during the early hours of the morning.
He was quickly rushed to Northwick Park Hospital where he was given 15 stitches to seal the cut at the back of his head and about six stitches for his thumb.
The married father-of-three, who is currently taking daily doses of antibiotics to treat his wound, claims the situation has left himself and fellow residents “crippled” with fear.
A sufferer of epilepsy, Mr Baxter said he has had more seizures than ever since the attack.
A Genesis spokesman said: “We are unable to comment in detail about this case as police investigations are ongoing.
“We are working closely with the police and Look Ahead Care and Support, who provide the additional support services to the residents, to review the case, and will also be conducting an internal assessment of the procedures followed in the lead-up to and aftermath of this incident.”
A police spokesman told the Times a man has been charged with attacking Mr Baxter. He is currently in custody awaiting trial.
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