A MAN who nearly died when he was stabbed eight times outside of an Aldi shop said he was “buzzing” after being left with a scar on his face – because he is a fan of Al Pacino and the film Scarface.

Michael Inwood was attacked in Spennymoor on the afternoon of September 9 after he wrongly accused 46-year-old Mark Pearson of being a paedophile whilst on an Arriva bus.

Mr Inwood was stabbed with a knife in the heart, lung, neck, back and face and has been left with neurological and cognitive difficulties following the incident.

Pearson, of Eden Road, Spennymoor, denies attempted murder and is facing trial this week at Newcastle Crown Court.

The court heard on Tuesday that the pair had “chew” between them for months and would often have verbal altercations when they crossed paths.

Mr Inwood, who was giving evidence yesterday, described Pearson as a “soft lad” who had refused to fight him on several occasions.

He said: “Whenever we saw each other we would both make our mouths go. I would offer him out and he would always say ‘wait till I’ve got a tool’ and run away. He was known for carrying knives and stuff on him.

“It all started when someone was going to drive a Jeep into a house near mine, it was a hot day so I had the door open and could hear it all going on.

“When I got there it was some lads who were after Mark. I chased them off and was offering Mark out but he wouldn’t come down. He’s a soft lad and he can’t handle it.

“A couple told me that he was on a MAPPA 1 which I know is for sex offenders, that sparked it up a bit more. I was angry because there were kids in the house and there were always kids in the street as well.

“I do have loads of enemies and before this I was up for fighting anyone, but no-one said they were going stab me. I had Facebook messages from him [Pearson] saying he was gonna stab me up.

“I have two Facebook accounts and can’t remember the password to the other one, I never made any threats other than to punch him all over.”

Mr Inwood went on to say that on one occasion Pearson “tried to take his head off” with a gardening tool and on another chased him with a homemade bat.

He added: “I knew it was a homemade bat because I used to make them when I was in prison.”

Whilst describing his injuries Mr Inwood said he had always wanted a scar on his face, preferably running down from his eye, but he is “buzzing” with the scar on his cheek as he has been a longtime fan of Al Pacino and Scarface.

When asked if he carried knives or weapons himself he denied it, however the court heard that Inwood was previously convicted of possessing a bladed article in 2008.

He said he sometimes carried a dog lead for self defence but denied hitting Pearson on the legs with it, adding that if he had got hold of him he would have “bit his nose off or bit his ear clean off”.

He said: “I know I was a mouthy t*** before this but there was no need for him to end things the way he did.

“I did not want to get him locked up, I wanted to take matters into my own hands.”

The trial continues.