The Bermudian police officer stabbed in a British nightclub says he feels “puzzled” as to why the suspect was cleared of the unprovoked attack.

Kyle Godfrey, 22, suffered a punctured lung in the assault, which took place at the Wonderworld nightclub in Milton Keynes early on Saturday, October 31.

Kier Lawrie, 25, from Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, was found not guilty of wounding with intent and unlawful wounding at Aylesbury Crown Court last Tuesday.

However, he was found guilty of having a blade in a public place and sentenced to six months in prison.

After returning to Bermuda the day after the trial ended, Mr Godfrey, who has recovered fully from his injuries, told The Royal Gazette: “I’m still confused at what happened.

“Thames Valley Police told me from the get-go that everything was caught on CCTV. They arrested the guy they believed had stabbed me and the DNA testing showed my blood and that he was carrying the knife.

“They said it was pretty much a 99 per cent chance he was going to be convicted.”

Mr Godfrey, who works in the response division of the Bermuda Police Service, was also asked by British police not to give evidence in his trial and, at the last minute, not to attend the trial at all.

“They said they had sufficient evidence for the case,” he said. “Then I was supposed to attend court on Monday, but the officer I was liaising with said I couldn’t attend as the courtroom was full.

“On the Tuesday, I was just told not to attend.”

Mr Godfrey, who had never seen or spoken to Lawrie before the attack, was told that the not guilty verdict stemmed from a supposed discrepancy in the CCTV footage of the incident.

He has never watched the footage of the attack himself, which occurred while his back was turned.

“They explained that they can see him [Lawrie] on CCTV walking up to me with the knife, but that the position where he was standing — behind me on my right side — doesn’t add up to where I got stabbed, which was on my left side,” Mr Godfrey said.

While he said he was trying to remain positive, he admitted that he was disappointed at the handling of the trial, and that his faith in the justice system had been shaken.

“It was unfortunate that this happened to me. It could have been anyone,” he said.

“I’m more puzzled than anything. I e-mailed the police today and told them I wanted to ask them some questions, because they sort of left me high and dry.

“If the circumstances had been different, someone would have got away with murder.”

• It is The Royal Gazette’s policy not to allow comments on stories regarding criminal court cases. As we are legally liable for any slanderous or defamatory comments made on our website, this move is for our protection as well as that of our readers.