A man has been jailed for 10 years for a “vicious, feral and wholly murderous” near-fatal knife attack that has left his victim permanently scarred.

Jordan Bald, 25, pounced on a man along the Union Canal towpath in Edinburgh following an altercation after a house party.

Armed with a knife, Bald “rained down” repeated blows to the victim’s head and body.

The man suffered 10 stab wounds and a fractured skull.

A cyclist who witnessed the attack told Bald’s trial he heard the victim plead: “Please stop, I have kids.”

However, Bald continued to strike him on the head with the blade several times after he said this.

The victim suffered head, neck, chest, back, arm, elbow and hip injuries.

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Wounds to his neck and right common carotid artery and to his right arm required surgery. His chest and abdominal wounds all carried a “high potential risk of danger of life”, according to a judge.

Lord Arthurson added that the victim has since made a full recovery but has been left with permanent disfigurement.

Following a trial at the High Court in Edinburgh, Bald was convicted of assault to severe injury, permanent disfigurement, and attempted murder.

During sentencing at the High Court in Glasgow on Tuesday, Lord Arthurson said: “This was a vicious, feral and wholly murderous attack by you in which you rained down repeated blows with a bladed weapon upon your victim with, on any view, the clear intent to stab him to death, all as he begged for mercy.”

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The incident happened on the night of 3-4 April 2021.

The cyclist who testified witnessed Bald jumping during the assault in order to get “more weight and force” into his strikes.

Bald, who was said to be under the influence of alcohol at the time, left the scene of the attack and disposed of the weapon in a bin near a bus shelter.

Lord Arthurson said: “In these circumstances, it is perhaps unsurprising that the jury entirely rejected your position that you were acting in self-defence.”

The judge noted Bald’s limited criminal record, the victim’s “non-engagement with the trial process, his full recovery and the background to his attendance at the party”.

However, given the gravity of the crime, Lord Arthurson concluded that only a “very substantial custodial sentence would be appropriate”.

Following the court case, Detective Inspector Gordon Couper said: “Jordan Bald subjected the victim in this case to a brutal and sustained attack, resulting in a number of serious injuries.

“His conviction and sentencing send a clear message that such violence will not be tolerated in Edinburgh.

“He will now face the consequences of his actions and we will continue to take action against any other violent offenders.”

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