Bristol Trial: Stabbing Victim Lost 16 Litres of Blood
Court heard Leon Phillips died from multiple organ failure after a confrontation outside a supermarket in Easton.
By Aiko Brooks ·
A fatal confrontation on a Bristol street ended in the death of 47-year-old Leon Phillips, who lost a volume of blood far exceeding the amount in his body. The details emerged during the trial of Mustafa Ali at Bristol Crown Court.
Forensic pathologist Dr. Megan Jenkins testified that Phillips was stabbed three times on the night of February 2, 2026. He died at Southmead Hospital at 8:02 a.m. the following morning after suffering multiple organ failure. Dr. Jenkins stated that Phillips lost 16 litres of blood during emergency surgery, a figure that dwarfs the five to six litres found in a typical adult male.
The wounds measured approximately 15 centimeters deep in two locations and seven centimeters deep in a third. The court heard that the injuries were consistent with the use of at least two different knives. A consultant physician described the situation as "massive bleeding from all wounds" despite back-to-back blood transfusions administered during the operation.
CCTV footage from outside Malik Supermarket on Stapleton Road captured the incident at approximately 10:50 p.m. The video showed Phillips lying on his back, wailing in pain and requesting assistance. A passerby stopped to call emergency services. Phillips had been cycling toward the store with an unidentified associate just minutes before the scuffle began.
Mustafa Ali, 19, from Fishponds, denies the murder charge. Footage from earlier in the evening showed a group including Ali crossing the road near Pepe’s chicken shop at 10:15 p.m. After the altercation, several men fled into an alleyway near Somerset House while police pursued them. One individual was seen throwing an item into the entrance of nearby flats.
A post mortem examination detected morphine, methadone, ketamine, cocaine, diazepam, and fentanyl in Phillips’s blood. Dr. Jenkins noted that emergency responders had administered ketamine during resuscitation efforts. She told the court that the presence of these substances did not impact Phillips’s likelihood of survival from the stabbing injuries.
The court also reviewed a separate incident from January 28, 2026, five days prior to the stabbing. In that event, a man brandished an axe at Phillips outside the same supermarket before fleeing. The trial is ongoing.
