A KNIFEMAN who stabbed a Suffolk woman with a four-inch blade during a fit of road rage may have been trying to kill his victim, say police.The 28-year-old was stabbed in the stomach during a terrifying ordeal at Joe's Road, Cornard Tye, near Sudbury last week.

A KNIFEMAN who stabbed a Suffolk woman with a four-inch blade during a fit of road rage may have been trying to kill his victim, say police.

The 28-year-old was stabbed in the stomach during a terrifying ordeal at Joe's Road, Cornard Tye, near Sudbury last week. Det Insp Mike Bacon, who is leading the investigation, says the attack may have been attempted murder.

He also said the knifeman could be a local person with a good knowledge of the area where the unprovoked attack happened.

"If someone stabs a person in the stomach with a four-inch knife then quite clearly this could have been an attempted murder. Joe's Road and other nearby roads are well known short-cuts locally, so it is possible the attacker is from the area or knows it well," he said.

The woman was left with the knife embedded in her stomach last Thursday after the attacker accused her of "cutting him up."

She was driving her silver Ford Focus from Great Cornard towards Newton Green when she noticed a vehicle behind her flashing its lights.

She pulled into Joe's Road in a bid to lose her pursuer, before stopping her car and getting out. The attacker who was driving a small, red hatchback car, followed her and also got out of his car.

During the altercation that followed the man plunged the knife into the married woman's stomach before driving off in the direction of Little Cornard.

After stumbling back to her car, with the knife still lodged in her stomach, the woman managed to raise the alarm on her mobile phone.

She has now been released from Colchester General Hospital, where she underwent a three-hour operation on her injuries, and is being comforted at her Sudbury home by her husband and a police liaison officer.

Suffolk police have now re-issued an appeal for public assistance after a computer-generated image of the attacker bought in only "limited" information.

Det Insp Bacon added: "Unfortunately we have had a limited response following our appeals for information with approximately 17 calls being made to the inquiry line number. However, we have retrieved some useful information and a dedicated team of 10 officers will continue to investigate these leads.

"I don't think this is a case of a man going around randomly attacking women, I think it was triggered by the dispute over motoring, however, this doesn't lessen the severity of the offence.

"We have a good description and image of the suspect and I remain convinced we can resolve this crime."

The knifeman is described as white, aged in his early 40s, 5ft 9in tall, of medium build and with a tanned complexion. He was clean-shaven, with short, dark hair and wore a dark short-sleeved T-shirt, blue jeans and had a stud in his left ear.

Anyone with information or who recognises the image of the attacker should telephone 01284 774344 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.