A 35-year-old man has been sentenced to 27 years in prison after stabbing his partner eight times when she caught him in bed with a male lover. Ryan Leggett’s attack left the woman with life-threatening injuries, including punctured lungs, a fractured rib, and liver damage. The incident occurred on November 23 in Lowestoft after the woman returned home early from work and discovered Leggett with another man and what appeared to be cocaine on a plate.
Ipswich Crown Court heard that Leggett attempted to silence the woman by taking her phone, locking her inside, and repeatedly stabbing her. He allegedly hoped she would die to “save his own embarrassment,” according to Judge Martyn Levett, who described Leggett as “unpredictable and dangerous, prone to violent outbursts after taking drugs.”
Leggett had denied attempted murder but was convicted by a jury in September. He had previously pleaded guilty to a separate charge of threatening someone with a knife in a private place. The judge also ordered an extended license period of three years following his release and issued an indefinite restraining order preventing Leggett from contacting the victim or her family.
Prosecutor Duncan O’Donnell told the court that another resident had alerted a neighbor, and Leggett was arrested the same day at his father’s home, with self-inflicted wrist wounds. In a victim impact statement, the woman said she continues to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, nightmares, and ongoing fear, forcing her to relocate and live in constant anxiety over Leggett. She added: “Our whole relationship was a lie… I feel people just see me as the girl Ryan Leggett tried to kill.”
