THIS is the shocking moment a towering knifeman was arrested for stabbing a female cop with a seven-inch blade.
Declan Diedrick, 25, was suffering a psychotic episode as he attacked two officers in Harlow, Essex, on December 29, 2023.
Diedrick stabbed PC Hollie Matthews in the head when she and a colleague tried to get him to put down a seven-inch kitchen knife.
Jurors were shown the shocking bodycam footage of PC Matthews grappling with Diedrick in a terrifying confrontation.
The 25-year-old loomed in the hallway of a tidy terraced house in Harlow clutching a seven-inch bread knife as PC Matthews and acting Sergeant Gemma Sandy arrived at the scene.
Without hesitation, PC Matthews stepped forward, ordering: “Put the knife down, put the knife down!” before trying to wrestle the blade from his grip.
What followed was like a scene from horror flick Scream as the pair burst from the hallway into the kitchen, locked in a desperate struggle.
A family friend could be seen also trying to restrain Diedrick in footage while Sgt Sandy also tried to restrain him ineffectively.
The fight spilled out into the back garden where Diedrick slashed at the officer, missing her eye by mere millimetres as the blade sliced above her ear.
He then stabbed down at PC Matthews who wheeled away and fell to the ground as she cried out in pain.
Despite the frenzied attack, the two officers finally managed to bring the knife-wielding thug to the ground and get him in cuffs as colleagues arrived to help.
PC Matthews was rushed to hospital where medics glued her wound.
She has been left with a permanent scar and revealed in a harrowing victim impact statement that she still suffers insomnia and nightmares nearly two years on from the ordeal.
Diedrick has since been jailed for five years after being found guilty of causing grievous bodily harm.
PC Matthews was stabbed just above her ear and the wound had to be glued.
“I was just trying to help, to do my job,” said PC Matthews.
In a victim impact statement read to the court by prosecutor Andrew Bird, KC, the officer said she thought about the attack every day, trying to figure out “why did [Diedrick] want to hurt me?”.
“I had to sit in my own blood for days; I couldn’t wash my hair — it was matted together with blood,” she said.
The officer said she had been worried that if she had not tried to help Diedrick, she would have faced an internal police investigation afterwards.
“You call the police during the worst moments of your life, but I’ve been called to one of the worst [moments] of mine,” she said.
She added that the emotional toll ran “deeper than any wound”.
Despite the ground covered throughout the property, the whole incident lasted less than 60 seconds.
During his sentencing, prosecution and defence agreed Diedrick’s psychotic episode would have had an impact on his judgement, which would have been exacerbated by his use of illegal drugs.
His family had been trying to get him professional help for months, jurors were told.
Acting Sgt Gemma Sandy witnessed the attack and was injured, but did not require hospital treatment.
In her victim impact statement, she said: “I know I acted in the best way I could.
“I’m so proud of how Hollie acted, but I still feel guilt about the whole thing. I was part of a horrific attack.”
‘RECURRING NIGHTMARE’
Meanwhile, Sgt Sandy admitted in her victim impact statement that she had failed to take her taser with her for the shift.
The mother-of-two described suffering a “recurring nightmare”, adding: “All I can do now is rethink all my actions and look back in hindsight.
“I don’t want to have the stigma of not getting stuck in. I do not want other officers to think I’m not capable.”
Judge Charles Bourne, sitting at Chelmsford Crown Court, said: “We all depend on the police like them who come out in response to an emergency call with no idea what to expect.
“They went out on calls like this to keep others safe. I hope they will be able to put this behind them.”
Diedrick, who had admitted GBH and another count of wounding, which was allowed to lie on file, was given a further 12-month concurrent jail term for having the knife.
The defendant, who could be released in little over a year from now because he has already served 707 days on remand, showed no emotion as he was sentenced.
Offenders sentenced for serious violent or sexual offences are typically eligible for release at the two-thirds point.
Judge Bourne warned Diedrick to “avoid illicit substances” when he was eventually freed.
Chairman of Essex Police Federation Steve Martin said: “This incident serves as a stark reminder of the dangers officers face daily.”
