Boy, 15, almost dies in 'random, unprovoked' stabbing in chest by masked man with zombie knife
A mum claims doctors 'don't know' how her son survived being stabbed in the chest by a giant 'ZOMBIE KNIFE' in an 'unprovoked attack' - weeks before his 16th birthday.
Oshay Woolley had been heading back to his home for his dinner when a masked man 'pushed the huge knife into his chest' and slashed open his arm on August 9th around 7pm. The terrifying incident unfolded in Winston Green, Birmingham, where the then 15-year-old was treated at the scene before being taken to hospital.
Sharday Gibbs, Oshay's mum, says 'her heart stopped' when she received the phone call that evening from West Midlands Police to inform her of her son's injuries.
The 35-year-old then rushed to Birmingham Children's Hospital to be with the youngster as she feared he would die and not live to see his 16th birthday. When she saw Oshay for the first time in hospital, she claims he looked 'half-dead' and had to have all his clothes cut off as he was losing so much blood.
The student then underwent surgery as she says the stab wound in his chest had caused his lungs to leak air. Fortunately, after also having the tendons repaired in his arm, Oshay made it out of hospital on August 13th in time to celebrate turning 16 on August 27th.
Despite this, Sharday says she will never recover from what her son went through and claims he has been left with PTSD from the incident.
She is now sharing her son's story to make others aware of the impact the stabbing has had on the whole family.
Sharday, from Frankley in Birmingham, said: "They [the attacker] almost killed my boy. The doctors said they don't know how he is alive. [On August 9th], I got the call and it was awful. With the knife crime [in Birmingham] I always fear getting this call.
"At first I thought the call was a joke but then I realised it was for real. My heart stopped and I thought I was going to collapse. When I saw him in the hospital, I was screaming, crying and couldn't speak. He looked half dead in that bed.
"The zombie knives are huge. He knew what it was and told me about it." Following his operation on August 10, Oshay had his arm bandaged and put in a cast as the knife had cut through the muscles in his limb.
And after being discharged from hospital, he will now have to attend hand therapy sessions to mend the nerve damage in his arm.
Sharday said: "He's my only son. Now I'm having nightmares as I'm upset that it happened to him and I can't get out of my head how scared he was [in the moment]. The cut on his arm was pretty bad and he was in surgery for hours. Now he's in a cast and they need to see how his fingers are as he can't move them at the moment."
Sharday claims her son's stabbing was an 'unprovoked' attack and the attacker was wearing a mask when they impaled him.
Oshay is an aspiring architect and was set to start college this month but has had to put this on hold due to the impact the stabbing has had on him.
Sharday said: "I reckon he now has PTSD and won't be able to go out of the house for a very long time as it was a random attack. I'm scared to let him out of the house now. Even if he recovers, I'm never going to recover from it.
"We know that knives are dangerous but this doesn't just affect the person who is stabbed. It impacts the family members forever and changes lives forever. They almost killed him and he is very lucky, but there are others out there that aren't as lucky and the parents have to live with that. He almost didn't live his full life and almost didn't make it to his 16th birthday and that makes me sick to my stomach. No parents should have to go through what I've had to go through. It's the after effects I now have to worry about."
West Midlands Police confirmed an ongoing investigation into the stabbing.
A spokesperson for West Midlands Police said: "We're investigating after a teenage boy suffered stab injuries in Winson Green, Birmingham, on 9 August. Officers were alerted by ambulance colleagues at just before 7.20pm and attended Carlisle Street where they found the youngster with injuries to his chest and arm.
"The 15-year-old was treated at the scene before being taken to hospital with injuries. A forensic examination of the area was carried out and investigators are continuing with enquiries to identify and trace those involved.
"Anyone with information can contact us on 101 or via Live Chat on our website quoting crime reference 20/338436/25. Want to pass on information but not give your details? Speak 100% anonymously to independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111."