Man charged over stabbing of uniformed Army officer

The soldier, reportedly a Lieutenant-Colonel, is a serious condition in hospital after the attack in Gillingham, Kent.

Anthony Esan outside court on Thursday (Gareth Fuller/PA Wire)

A 24-year-old man has been charged with the attempted murder of an Army officer in uniform near a barracks.

Anthony Esan will appear in court on Thursday over the attack on Lieutenant Colonel Mark Teeton, in Gillingham, Kent, on Tuesday.

The serviceman, in his 40s, is in hospital in a serious but stable condition after being repeatedly stabbed.

Esan, who was arrested near his home in nearby Rochester, has also been charged with possessing an offensive weapon in a public place and will appear at Medway Magistrates’ Court.

Head of the Army General Sir Roly Walker condemned the stabbing as “horrific and unprovoked”, while Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said he was “shocked and appalled”.

Sally Port Gardens where police said the incident took place is near Brompton Barracks, the headquarters of the British Army’s 1 Royal School of Military Engineering Regiment.

The attack happened at around 5.55pm on Tuesday, with the suspect being arrested around 25 minutes later.

Lt Col Teeton is a chartered engineer working as a course manager in the Army’s Corps of Royal Engineers, according to a LinkedIn page, which shows he has worked in various roles in the armed forces going back to 2001.

Earlier this year he raised nearly £2,500 for Combat Stress, a veterans mental health charity, by running the D-Day challenge in Normandy in June, a fundraising page showed.