Baby spattered with blood after father is stabbed 11 times in the face by Rolex robbers who burst into their home

By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 9:15 PM on 30th September 2009

A businessman was stabbed 11 times in the face by thugs who barged into his house while he was feeding his 12-week-old baby son.

Ricki Hall's wife listened in terror from upstairs as they turned the living room into a bloodbath, demanding money and screaming: 'Say your final words before we kill you.'

The horrific attack took place in the family's £350,000 four-bedroom detached house in an upmarket district of Leicester.

It happened just a few miles from the scene of the Fiona Pilkington tragedy where a mother was hounded by yobs before killing herself and her disabled daughter.

As Leicestershire Police insisted they were cracking down on violent criminals, Mr and Mrs Hall told how a family day last Sunday turned to terror.

Mr Hall, 39, who runs a car dealership selling BMWs and Mercedes, lost two pints of blood in the 15-minute attack and needed 40 stitches.

He said: 'I had just been feeding my son, Milan, when I heard a knock on the door and someone shouting "pizza delivery". I answered the door to say they must have the wrong address and I was charged by three big blokes.

'They immediately started slashing me with a knife and kicking and punching me. I was knifed maybe ten or 11 times with a large blade which looked like it had a very sharp serrated edge.

'I kept thinking they were going to stab me in the eyes but amazingly they missed my eyes by a few centimetres. They said: "If you have any final words, say them now before we kill you".'

Amazingly, although the baby lying on the sofa was spattered with Mr Hall's blood, he slept soundly through the ordeal and was unharmed.
Mr Hall's terrified wife Zoya was upstairs when the robbers struck. She said: 'We were coming to the end of a lovely family day when it happened. I heard the fighting noises downstairs and they were demanding, "where's the safe?"

'They had deep male voices and shouted, "where is the money?" and "say your final words". I thought they were killing my husband and our baby.'

Mrs Hall, 21, hid in a wardrobe with a cordless phone and tried to alert police but the batteries were dead.

She said: 'I heard the robbers running upstairs and I held my breath as they emptied drawers and looked under the bed just inches away from me.

'It was terrifying but all I could think about was Milan. I was so scared they had hurt him and when I saw Ricki I was amazed he wasn't dead.'