Son slashed dad across face and stabbed him with letter opener in row over girlfriend

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A son slashed his dad across the face and stabbed him in the shoulder with an ornate letter opener during a row about his girlfriend. John Forde, 31, was found guilty by a jury of carrying out the attack on his father at the home they shared in Perth on 17 February last year.

Sheriff Jennifer Bain KC deferred sentence for reports and told Forde: "You have been found guilty of assaulting your father with a knife to his injury. This is a very serious matter."

Perth Sheriff Court was told that the father and son would regularly sit together to watch football, have drinks and open their mail with the letter opener. Mr Forde snr, 61, told the jury that he was drunk and could not remember what had happened, but claimed he may have fallen on the sharp device accidentally.

However, the jury were read his original police statement in which he told officers that he had been attacked by his son when they were both under the influence of alcohol. He told police that they had a row after the accused became angry in response to a message he received from his girlfriend while they were watching television.

"I mentioned something like 'she's a bit young' and he started shouting at me and became aggressive," the victim said in his statement, given shortly after his son's arrest. John stood up and pushed me and I pushed him back.

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"He then ran the knife up and down my neck with the sharp part. We began struggling. I felt a sharp cut along the left side of my forehead. I felt a sharp pain in my left shoulder. I think he stabbed me with the knife."

The court was told that Mr Forde Snr suffered a 10 centimetre cut which ran along his forehead and down to his ear, as well as a stab wound to his shoulder. Forde was found guilty of striking his father in the head and body with a knife and bail was granted while pre-sentence background reports are prepared.

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