A teenager's hand was severed in a brutal machete attack in Abbots Langley, Hertfordshire, a court has heard. Tyler Stevens, 19, was struck six or seven times with a large blade while curled up on a grass verge on the evening of 10 February.
Prosecutor Simon Wilshire told St Albans Crown Court that the attack was 'as brief as it was savage', with one blow completely severing Mr Stevens' left hand. Despite surgical efforts, the hand could not be reattached.
The defendant, Che Ambe, 21, from Watford, denies causing grievous bodily harm with intent. The court heard that Mr Stevens was also carrying a knife at the time and that all three individuals knew each other and were on bad terms.
Mr Stevens and a friend were walking home from a supermarket when Mr Ambe approached on a moped. The pair ran, but Mr Stevens slipped on a grass verge. The friend escaped unharmed.
Mr Ambe was arrested after police used a stinger device to puncture his moped's tyres. Initially denying involvement, he now claims he acted in self-defence after Mr Stevens brandished a knife at him. The trial continues.
