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A knifeman who attacked his pregnant ex-girlfriend after she’d dropped her children off at school has been jailed for attempted murder.
Daniel Mihai Popescu, 29, launched the vicious attack on Andreea Pintili on the morning of 5 December in Coronation Place, Aberfan, South Wales, and has now been locked behind bars for more than 17 years.
Armed police officers were called to the scene and Ms Pintili was rushed to the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff for treatment, before being released.
Prior to stabbing her, he had stalked his victim by following her, calling her from withheld numbers and had recorded a video of her which he had then uploaded to TikTok.
At the time she was attacked, Ms Pintili – who was 37 weeks pregnant with Popescu’s child – was returning from dropping her children off at school.
Popescu had hidden behind a parked car with a large knife as he waited for Ms Pintili to return home. As she tried to run from him, she fell to the floor and Popescu repeatedly stabbed her – only stopping his assault when confronted by a member of the public.
A seven-hour manhunt ensured to find Popescu before he was arrested, and schools within a three-mile radius were placed under lockdown for several hours during the incident.
Popescu pleaded guilty to attempted murder and stalking at a hearing earlier this year.
Appearing at Merthyr Crown Court on Tuesday, Judge Tracey Lloyd-Clarke, Recorder of Cardiff, handed Popescu a 20-year and four-month extended sentence, comprising 17 years and four months in jail and a further three years on licence, when he will be monitored.
Judge Lloyd-Clarke said the extended sentence was needed to “protect the public in the future” and despite his guilty pleas said it was “apparent you feel very little true remorse”.
Popescu must serve two-thirds of his sentence behind bars before the parole board will consider whether he is safe to be released.
Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court was told Popescu had been in a relationship with Ms Pintili from September 2020 until she broke up with him in August 2023.
In the months before the attack, Popescu began stalking Ms Popili, leaving her messages, knocking on her window and calling her from a withheld number, prosecutors said. During this period, he was arrested and bailed with conditions not to contact her.
But Judge Lloyd-Clarke said: “On December 1 2023, you messaged your sister to say that you had found out where Ms Pintili was living and that she had, as you believed, got back together with her former partner.
“You sent two other messages to your sister, one of which included the phrase ‘wh***s must die’. You told the person that you were staying with that you were going to stab Ms Pintili’s new partner.”
The judge said: “You grabbed her by the arm of her jacket, you told her to go in the house, that you had a knife and that you would kill her if she did not do what you said. Ms Pintili turned and tried to run away but she fell to the floor.
“While she was on the floor you stabbed her a number of times, she held her stomach to try to protect her unborn child, she was 37 weeks pregnant with your child.”
A woman passing by saw what was happening, screamed and tried to help Ms Pintili and Popescu ran away.
The unborn child was unharmed.
Detective Inspector James Morris of South Wales Police said: The strength and bravery of the victim in supporting this prosecution has been extraordinary.
“Unsurprisingly she remains psychologically scarred as a result of the incident, but I know that, thanks to her courage, Daniel Popescu will be unable to harm any further women. I hope that today’s sentence will bring at least a degree of closure for her.
“I must also commend the actions of the courageous member of the public for their bravery in running to help the victim after the attack.”
Additional reporting by PA
