I thought that was it... says woman who survived attack by murderer Carl Powell

A WOMAN who survived an attack by murderer Carl Powell just weeks after he killed Caroline Coyne said she had a lucky escape.

She wiped away tears in court as she saw Powell being sentenced yesterday.

CCTV of Powell during the second incident matched footage taken at the time of Ms Coyne's murder.

The court heard Powell attacked the second woman as she walked alone along Carlton Road out of the city. Powell grabbed her and dragged her into the grounds of the City College site.

She said: "I had no idea what was going to happen. I was really scared. He pushed me down behind a wall. It was very dark.

"I thought that was it. I am a Christian. I just prayed to God, saying 'please God... please'."

She said his hands were tight around her neck and she couldn't breathe. "I kept asking him why he was doing this and tried to keep him talking. I told him I would be quiet, and that I wouldn't cause any problems.

"I cried at first, but then decided that I had to act like he hadn't done anything wrong. I apologised for crying and told him that he had given me a fright. He actually apologised to me. I didn't freak out, but managed to persuade him to carry on walking up Carlton Road. I tried to convince him I liked him, by being nice. He kept trying to kiss me and do other things but I told him that my mum was waiting for me and that we could meet up another day.

"I didn't want to make him hostile again and kept trying to convince him to keep on walking up the road. I believe he was fully convinced I wasn't bothered by what he had done. He figured we were getting on. He seemed convinced that I wouldn't report him.

"I told him we would do the things he wanted to do another day, and gave him my phone number to make him believe it. He eventually let me go. The whole thing lasted about 45 minutes, maybe longer.

"I had to keep my wits about me and got home to my mum and told her what had happened. If he had held my neck any longer, I dread to think what would have happened, as I couldn't breathe."