Gardener, 20, is stabbed by thug who tried to steal his £2,500 purebred French bulldog puppy named Vinnie
- Aaron Aston said he was stabbed with pocket knife and left to stagger to friend’s
- Mr Aston, 20, was attacked as he walked his dog Vinnie down an alley in Leeds
- Named after Vinnie Jones, the dog is a £2,500 blue lilac pedigree French bulldog
- Self employed gardener Mr Aston said he has had anxiety after the vicious attack
Aaron Aston told officers he was attacked with a pocket knife while protecting his dog Vinnie (pictured together)
The owner of a French Bulldog has told how he was stabbed by a thug who tried to steal his dog in an alley.
Aaron Aston said he was attacked with a pocket knife and left to stagger to a friend’s house, leaving a trail of blood.
The attacker pounced as Mr Aston walked Vinnie down an alley in Leeds, West Yorkshire, last month.
The pet, named after Vinnie Jones, is a £2,500 pedigree blue lilac French bulldog and is five months old.
The 20-year-old self employed gardener said: ‘I was out walking the dog by myself. I had decided to take him on a long walk while my girlfriend was at work.
‘I was walking through a ginnel and someone asked me ”Is that a French bull dog?” and asked how old he is.
‘I told him and he said ”great. That’s nice – now give me your f***king dog”.
‘I carried on walking and he crept up behind me and punched me in the face. I hit him back and thought he had punched me in the ribs – but he had stabbed me.
‘I picked up my dog and went to my mate’s. It was only when he saw the hole in my jumper I realised I had been stabbed.
‘It was bleeding quite badly. I had to hold the wound together. I had to get a taxi to hospital and get butterfly stitches.
‘I have had anxiety afterwards. Now it is really bad. I have to be in the house by 4pm with all the doors locked and the lights off. I wont even answer the phone.
‘I feel like I am in jail.
‘The man who attacked me sounded in his mid 20s. He was about five ten or 11, and stocky build.
‘He was dressed all in black. His face was covered up by his jumper so I could just see his eyes.
He was stabbed (pictured) by his attacker as he walked French Bulldog Vinnie down an alley in Leeds, West Yorkshire
‘The doctors said I had definitely been stabbed. The police said it looked like a pocket knife wound.
‘My mum has to park outside and come to the door so I can walk the dog in front of the flat on the grass.’
Mr Aston is on medication for his anxiety.
The attack on Mr Aston happened off Potter Newton Lane, Meanwood, Leeds.
‘It was 6 or 7pm in the evening. It was dark. It was pitch black. It happened about a month ago on a Tuesday evening.
‘It is close to xmas and you get thieves who take anything.’
A French bulldog about four months old was taken out of a garden on Seacroft Estate, Leeds, a couple of weeks after his ordeal.
Mr Aston added: ‘I was not going to let the dog be taken. It was not happening.’
Vinnie was a gift bought for his girlfriend Cheznie Nicholls, 19.
‘She did not know how to take it when she got a phone call saying her boyfriend had been stabbed,’ he said.
‘It was pretty scary. It is one of those things – you take the wrong path and it could happen to anyone.
‘Everyone loves their dogs. They are family at the end of the day.’
West Yorkshire police have been contacted for comment.