Pair who saved woman from brutal attack: ‘There was blood everywhere’

Wayne Hollerin, 35, was jailed for life following the brutal assault at the Regent Hotel earlier this year.

Detectives said the 21-year-old victim could have died if a group of men working nearby had not intervened.

Michael Cooper was working with property developer Jobs, Friends and Houses, which employs ex-offenders and addicts to help rehabilitate them, on the morning of the attack.

The 35-year-old apprentice electrician said: “We were standing out the front and the landlord comes running down screaming. There was blood everywhere, it was a mess.

“For him to have done what did, with such ferocity, he deserves what he got.”

Mr Cooper was followed into the hotel by six of his colleagues, where they were confronted with what they feared was a murder scene.

He added: “The guy had the woman in between his legs, just hitting her with a glass.

“He was off his head and just going mad with blood everywhere - all on the walls, the bed, the mattress.

“I kicked the glass out of his hand. It was lucky it hadn’t broken because if it had I don’t think she would have had much chance of surviving.”

Preston Crown Court heard last week that Hollerin thought he was hearing the voice of God during a drug-fuelled frenzy. The woman, from Cumbria, suffered a broken cheek and nose and a fractured eye socket in the brutal attack on June 11.

Hollerin, of no fixed address, travelled from Sheffield to meet her after they exchanged messages on Facebook.

He pleaded guilty to attempted murder and was ordered to serve a minimum of four years behind bars. He denied attempting to rape her and was acquitted at trial.

Ben Cook, 24, tried to help the woman while some of his colleagues used cable ties to restrain her attacker. He said: “She was just covered in blood and unresponsive. She had wounds all over her face – you couldn’t see her eyes from how swollen they were.”

Mr Cooper added: “To think we saved her life, it’s a nice feeling. I’m proud of it.”