A teenage drug dealer was told he could easily have killed the woman he stabbed in a ‘frenzied and sustained’ attack in Peel.

Dylan Craig Minton, 18, was jailed for more than six years after previously admitting wounding with intent.

The offence was committed on Wednesday, September 4 last year, in a wooded area near Campion Court in Peel, close to Queen Elizabeth II High School.

The teenager, who lives at Kerroo Coar in Peel, had also pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of class A drug cocaine, being concerned in the supply of class B drug cannabis, possession of cannabis with intent to supply, possession of cannabis and possession of criminal cash totalling £1,035.

Minton, who was 17 at the time of the offences, appeared at the Court of General Gaol for sentencing.

Prosecuting advocate Roger Kane told the court that on the evening of September 4, 2024, Minton’s father received a phone call from his son saying he had ‘messed up’ and that someone had been stabbed. Minton had cut his hand and needed hospital treatment.

Meanwhile, the female victim was taken to hospital after suffering nine stab wounds, two of which were serious. Minton was arrested a short time later.

When interviewed, the victim said she had arranged to meet Minton with a view to selling him cannabis.

She said she noticed ‘a shadowy figure’ and then suddenly felt as if she had been punched, experiencing ‘intense pain’ in her stomach. She realised she was bleeding but was unable to identify her attacker.

She spent five days in Noble’s Hospital. An examination found two stab wounds to her stomach, another to her left side, two to her upper arm and four to her back. Experts said the injuries were inflicted during five separate stabbing actions.

Mr Kane described the attack as ‘frenzied and sustained’ and said Minton had lured the victim to the wooded area.

In his basis of plea, Minton claimed a third person, referred to as Mr X, was present and had devised a plan to rob the woman.

He said that when she refused to hand over the drugs, a struggle followed and Mr X told Minton to stab her before fleeing the scene.

Mr Kane said the prosecution did not believe a third person had been present, but could not completely rule it out and therefore accepted the basis of plea.

A victim impact statement from the woman was read to the court. It said: ‘That moment changed my life forever and those memories will remain.

‘My family suffered, seeing me in pain, in recovery and in fear.

‘It has been a journey of transformation and has given me a new sense of purpose in life. I am now trying to pursue my dreams.

‘In time, I hope Dylan can come to understand the pain he caused and change his life too.’

Turning to the drug offences, Mr Kane said that on May 31, 2024, Minton and another person were stopped by police in Queen’s Drive, Peel, after officers smelled cannabis.

A search found Minton in possession of two packages of cannabis weighing a combined 195.2g, with a total value of £3,852, along with £1,035 in cash.

After his arrest for the stabbing, Minton’s phone was seized and showed clear evidence of drug dealing involving both cocaine and cannabis. A total of 274 messages were recovered, showing deals between June 24 and September 1, 2024.

The evidence showed he had dealt between 14g and 25g of cocaine, and between 781.5g and 1,536g of cannabis.

Deemster Graeme Cook said he had taken into account Minton’s guilty pleas and had sentenced him as a juvenile, in light of new laws coming into force early next year that will treat 17-year-olds as juveniles rather than adults. This resulted in a further reduction in sentence.

Addressing Minton, Deemster Cook said: ‘Your case has shown the public what can happen when young boys become involved in drug taking and drug dealing.

‘This could have had a horrific outcome. It gives me no pleasure sentencing someone so young to a lengthy period in prison.

‘I hope you learn from what you have done. You nearly cost somebody their life.’

Minton was jailed for three years and nine months for wounding with intent, and a consecutive total of two years and four months for the drug offences, making a total sentence of six years and one month.