A paranoid schizophrenic who stabbed five strangers in Nottinghamshire has been detained indefinitely. Junior Dietlin knifed four of his victims in Mansfield and another in Mapperley during a four day rampage in February last year.
During each attack, the 20-year-old was riding a lime green coloured electric scooter and would stab his victims in the upper arm. Detectives launched an investigation and after scouring CCTV identified Dietlin as he rode his e-scooter through Mansfield on February 13.
After being challenged by an officer, he tried to flee on the vehicle but a police dog named Wolf caught up with him and dragged him to the ground by the arm. Dietlin was arrested as other officers rushed to the scene and the scooter he was riding and his clothes matched those described by his victims.
A locking style knife was found nearby while a kitchen knife was recovered from a bag at an address where Dietlin had been staying. Mobile phone data also proved he had been in the area of each attack at around the time they were committed.
Dietlin appeared at Leicester Crown Court, where he was made the subject of an indefinite hospital order. He was found guilty at trial of five counts of malicious wounding and four counts of possessing a bladed article in a public place. He will only be discharged from the secure hospital with the agreement of the Secretary of State for Justice.
Detective Constable Matthew Fagan, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “The victims in this case were simply going about their daily business when they were subjected to entirely unprovoked acts of violence by Dietlin, who, after stabbing them in the arm, calmly walked or scooted away from the scene.
“A very large number of officers were deployed to this case to help track down and arrest Dietlin and I would like to thank each of them for many hours of work they put in over those few days to identify this offender and bring him into custody.
“I would also like to pay tribute to the actions of the police dog and his handler who acted so quickly to bring this man down.
"It really is a great example of what a well-trained police dog and handler can achieve in the service of the public.”
