Officer shares terrifying ordeal after being stabbed three times by Nuthall man

Sergeant Dan Griffin was left fearing for his life after a suspect he’d stopped to question in the street suddenly attacked him with a knife.

Knife-carrier Kai Green, of Larkfield Road, Nuthall, went on to stab Sgt Griffin three times – two times in the back of his leg and once in the chest – before the officer managed to wrestle his attacker to the ground.

Back-up arrived soon after to help detain Green, while Sgt Griffin was left to try to come to terms with what had just happened and to worry about how serious his wounds could be.

“A lot of people describe it as like being punched but I knew immediately that I’d been stabbed,” he said.

“When you get hit and you feel that pain, it's very sobering. You know exactly what's happened and a whole host of things go through your mind.

“I was determined to get the person though – and thankfully I did.

“My heart was racing but I could feel blood running down my trouser leg and gathering in a pool around my boot, so I knew it was a bad wound and there was a lot of blood loss.

“While I was being led along the street, the only thing that went through my mind then was my family.

“And again, it's kind of sobering because you don't know what's happening, you don't know what kind of injury you've got, so the only thing you can think about is loved ones.”

Green, aged 18, was handed an eight-year sentence last December for the attack in the Arboretum, Nottingham.

A police officer of ten years, Sgt Griffin admits the frightening ordeal in April 2022 did make him reconsider whether he wanted to carry on in the role.

He said: “I was scared to be honest when it happened – I’ve never been in that situation before and I don’t want to be in that situation again.

“It did make me reconsider being a police officer, but to be honest, this is the job I signed up to and I’m not the sort of person to shrink away from that.

“Although the wounds were deep, they did heal relatively quickly, but the psychological impact took quite some time – you remove the uniform and you’re still a person underneath.

“My colleagues have been rocks, ultimately. They've been the constant throughout my phased return and me coming back up to full speed.”

Inspector Ben Lawrence, who leads the City Central neighbourhood policing team, said: “What Dan went through that night was completely unacceptable and no police officer or anyone else should ever have to go through something like that.

“He showed incredible bravery that night to detain a suspect. Despite his injuries, which were serious, he remained with the suspect and was able to detain him following quite a struggle.

“It's not just that, it's the way that Dan has returned to work.

“We're incredibly proud of him and he's displayed incredible resilience.”