Life Sentence for Vicious Stabbing Near Barracks
A 25-year-old man who repeatedly stabbed a uniformed army officer outside Brompton Barracks in Chatham has been sentenced to life in prison, with a minimum term of seven years and 162 days.
Anthony Esan pleaded guilty to attempted murder and possession of two bladed weapons at Maidstone Crown Court in January. Experts agreed Esan was suffering from schizophrenia at the time of the brutal attack in July 2024.
Lieutenant Colonel Compares Attack to Lee Rigby Murder
Lieutenant Colonel Mark Teeton, who has served 26 years and survived two tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, described the horrifying moment Esan launched his knife assault. Teeton was left with multiple stab wounds to his neck, chest, abdomen, groin, arm, and thigh.
In a chilling account, Lt Col Teeton told the court he feared Esan was trying to behead him — a terrifying echo of the 2013 murder of Fusilier Lee Rigby by extremists near the Woolwich barracks.
“When I asked what he tried to do, he said: ‘Cut my head off. Like Lee Rigby.'”
His wife, Eileen Teeton, praised the courage of those who helped and shared in a victim statement the distress her husband faced: “He asked if people at work knew what he had tried to do to me.”
Prosecutor Details Pre-Meditated Attack
Prosecutor Alison Morgan KC described the stabbing as “vicious and deliberate.” She revealed Esan targeted Lt Col Teeton because of his military appearance and had researched terrorist attacks online, including the Woolwich murder.
Esan had asked Lt Col Teeton to borrow his phone, pretending his moped had broken down. When the officer was distracted, Esan launched the knife attack.
Esan previously tried — and failed — to join the British Army, having been rejected in 2021 due to a psychotic disorder and eczema. Mental health services had been involved the previous year after reports of him hearing voices.
Man to Be Held in Hospital Detention
The judge ordered Esan to be detained in a hospital for as long as necessary due to his mental health condition.
Esan’s knife attack sent shockwaves through the army community, with tributes pouring in for Lt Col Teeton’s bravery and survival.
