Anthony Ford fronts court for manslaughter at Point Cook
A much-loved family man stabbed in the chest outside a day spa at Point Cook died in the presence of his pregnant partner on her birthday.
West
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A much-loved Melbourne family man stabbed outside a day spa died in the arms of his pregnant partner on her birthday, a court has heard.
Benjamin Singleton was outside the Seasons 5 Resort and Spa at Point Cook on August 13, 2023 when Anthony Allan Ford stabbed him in the chest following a heated verbal and physical argument.
Ford, 29, pleaded guilty in the Supreme Court on Friday to manslaughter and was remanded in custody to be sentenced at a later date.
In her victim impact statement read in court, Mr Singleton’s partner Bianca Burt said all her memories were haunted by seeing him die and that she’s never slept well since the tragedy.
“I can still feel the exact feeling of Ben in my arms. I still see the way his eyes changed
as he died,” she said.
Ms Burt said on the day he died, they were two days away from finding out the baby’s sex.
“I will never look at my birthday in the same way again. This year was the first birthday since his death, and I was not able to celebrate because all I could think about was that it’s been a whole year without him, and all of the things that he’s missed,’’ she said.
“I think I would be pregnant again if Ben was still here. He said to me once ‘Let’s put a baby in every bedroom.’ Ben was so happy to become a father. Now, my son will forever never have a father.”
Prosecutor Angela Moran told the court about 2.40pm on August 13, 2023 Mr Singleton pushed Ford away when the latter confronted him outside the day spa.
Both locked arms and pushed each other back and forth before their fight moved to the driver’s side of Mr Singleton’s vehicle.
While they were wrestling on the ground, Ford removed a knife from his pocket and stabbed Mr Singleton multiple times, including inflicting two stab wounds to the heart.
As Ford stood up, Mr Singleton’s pregnant partner Bianca Burt saw a knife in Ford’s hand with a curved blade.
He warned her partner “Don’t, he’s got a knife”, walked a short distance before saying to Ms Burt “Bianca, he got me, he got me”.
Mr Singleton walked about 10 steps before collapsing on the driveway.
Ms Burt started CPR under instructions from the triple-0 call taker before paramedics arrived 14 minutes later.
They found Mr Singleton unconscious and bleeding heavily from multiple stab wounds.
CPR and blood infusion were attempted for about 50 minutes before he was pronounced dead.
Ms Moran said Ford’s culpability was high as he left the scene after stabbing Mr Singleton in a bid to avoid arrest.
Defence lawyer David Cronin said Ford’s remorse was reflected in the early guilty plea and his apology to the people affected by the tragedy.
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