'I did not ask for this at all': Stabbing victim recounts random attack in Sask. restaurant
Ryan John is still recovering from having a four-inch hunting knife plunged into his head by a stranger while picking up his order at Boston Pizza in Prince Albert on Oct. 14, 2020.
“He stabbed me once in the back right here ... the tip of the blade touched the other side of my head it went so far in.”
John was stabbed twice in the skull. During the attack he says he heard his attacker call him a “snitch.”
“I looked down at myself and I’m just spraying blood.”
A restaurant employee intervened and the attacker fled the scene.
Prince Albert police found the suspect, 19-year-old Trent Fox, moments later near the restaurant.
Fox was charged with attempted murder but pleaded guilty to aggravated assault. He was sentenced to four years in prison on July 8 in Prince Albert Provincial Court.
John says he wondered why the attack happened.
“I did not ask for this at all, he didn’t know me and I didn’t know him,” John said.
I DON’T REALLY FEAR DEATH
Doctors say John lost about 10 bags of blood and was close to death.
John was transported to Victoria Hospital and then airlifted in a STARS helicopter to Royal University Hospital in Saskatoon.
“And I thought I don’t want my mother to worry and the last thing I would want for her is to wake up and get that call about what happened,” he said.
John suffered an intracranial brain hemorrhage and was put into an induced coma so physicians could treat his injuries.
He was 21-years-old at the time of the attack. His mother, Michelle Hunt, was told by doctors the part of his brain responsible for mobility and sight was severed and he may be blind and never walk again.
Hunt had to make the decision to allow doctors to perform a high-risk surgery to try to repair his brain.
Part of John’s skull was removed and his body could have rejected the reinsertion of part of his skull.
John was in a coma for 13 days but woke up and today is on the road to recovery.
“They couldn’t believe that Ryan was alive and first of all that he could see and that he got up out of the bed and was walking and talking,” said Hunt.
John says he had a near death experience.
“The feeling of death was probably the most peaceful feeling you’ll ever get. I don’t really fear death after what happened.”
Hunt says her son’s life was just beginning and the attack has left him lifelong physical and emotional scars. She’s happy he’s alive to share his story.
“I keep an eye on Ryan closely,” said Hunt. “He has the most positive attitude ever. He’s out an about in Prince Albert again, and if you see him, just say hi to him.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING New York appeals court overturns Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction from landmark #MeToo trial
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
BREAKING Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Metro Vancouver mayors call for serial killer Robert Pickton to be denied parole
A dozen mayors from around Metro Vancouver say federal Attorney General and Justice Minister Arif Virani should deny parole for notorious B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton, and reassess the parole and sentencing system for 'prolific offenders and mass murderers.'
What do weight loss drugs mean for a diet industry built on eating less and exercising more?
Recent injected drugs like Wegovy and its predecessor, the diabetes medication Ozempic, are reshaping the health and fitness industries.
2 military horses that broke free and ran loose across London are in serious condition
Two military horses that bolted and ran miles through the streets of London after being spooked by construction noise and tossing their riders were in a serious condition and required operations, a British government official said Thursday.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.