A former 90s pop star who was stabbed “49 times” by a convicted wife killer and neighbour said she now lives with a daily reminder of the brutal attack.
Sandra Mckenzie, who was the singer with 90s ‘Whole Lotta Love’ hitmakers Goldbug, says she thought she was going to die when Stephen Allum left her with multiple stab wounds in the attack.
Allum was jailed for life last year after he admitted attempted murder, a sentence which came 23 years after he was given a hospital order for killing his wife.
Reflecting on the attack, which took place in Oxford in January last year, Ms McKenzie said: “It was absolutely terrifying. He was strangling me and I just felt all the life going out my body.
“I was absolutely terrified. I thought I was going to die.”
Allum lived next door to her in the Littlemore property, where Ms McKenzie, now 63, still lives and is desperate to move from.
The former pop singer says that she “got friendly” with her neighbour initially.
She said: “He invited me around for dinner but I kept putting it off.
“We used to meet in the garden when we went for a cigarette.”
But then on January 24, 2021, he invited her to his flat.
She added: “The minute I went round he grabbed my throat and pulled me out to the back garden and took me out, got me on the ground.
“He was strangling me, punching my face. He kept stabbing me in the chest.”
Ms Mckenzie said she suffered 49 separate stab wounds in the brutal assault.
She was subsequently bedridden for eight months and now has a walking frame and still feels pain if she puts any weight on the leg.
She says she is “pleased” he had gone to prison for the assault.
“I felt ‘thank god somebody had head, there is justice’. The police described it as the most vicious attack they’d ever seen.”
She said she was now desperate to be moved from her flat in Morrell Crescent by Response Housing partnership, which owns the apartment.
“When I go out my front door I relive [the attack]. I see him standing at his door,” said Ms Mckenzie, who first moved to Oxford 34 years ago but has suffered periods of homelessness since.
“I’m still in the same house. I have flash backs.
“I want to be moved but they’re doing nothing to find me a flat or house.”
In a joint statement, housing provider Response and Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust said: “Our obligation to uphold patient confidentiality prevents our organisations from discussing the detail around this case.
“However, we can say that patients who live on the Response Recovery Campus, which offers 24/7 intensive supported living, are under the care of qualified mental health practitioners and clinicians and that regular risk and safeguarding reviews take place.
“Following this attack, a serious incident review was carried out. The service user was involved in this and supported throughout all processes.
“She remains engaged with services and has access to round the clock help. If the service user has any concerns about the care she has received or is receiving, we encourage her to talk with her care team to see if any additional measures can be offered as she continues with her recovery journey.”
