Swordsman 'tried to murder his MP'

An enraged man tried to kill his MP with a samurai sword, then stabbed to death an aide who tried to stop him, a court has heard.

Robert Ashman, 52, lunged at Liberal Democrat Nigel Jones with 'horrifying violence', the jury was told.

The 54-year-old Cheltenham MP grabbed the 3ft blade with both hands to defend himself, suffering cuts which needed 57 stitches.

He escaped from his constituency office but Gloucestershire county councillor Andrew Pennington, 39, was trapped and stabbed six times, Bristol Crown Court heard.

Paul Garlick QC, prosecuting, said Ashman regularly visited Mr Jones's weekly surgeries for advice after he lost his job with a water company and his home was repossessed.

'Mr Ashman was a man totally obsessed with pursuing what he perceived to be his legal rights,' he said.

On the day of the attack, in January 2000, he took his father's wartime sword and hid it under his coat. After 'rambling about a conspiracy', he attacked the pair before calmly walking off, Mr Garlick said.

Ashman denies trying to kill Mr Jones but admits the manslaughter of Mr Pennington on the grounds of diminished responsibility. The trial continues.