A 29-year-old salesman stabbed a man in the chest at a house in Ipswich causing a life-threatening injury, a court has heard.

As a result of the attack in September last year 49-year-old Lloyd Fearon lost 4.3 litres of blood and while paramedics were taking him to hospital, they had to stop the ambulance and carry out chest decompressions after his blood pressure “disappeared”, Ipswich Crown Court heard.

Andrew Jackson, prosecuting, said Mr Fearon suffered a single stab wound close to his chest bone on the right side of his body which penetrated his chest cavity and injured one of the major arteries to the heart.

Mr Fearon underwent emergency surgery and needed a blood transfusion.

A doctor who treated him described his injury as life-threatening and said that most patients who suffered that level of trauma would not have survived.

Before the court was Ahmed Tarabi, 29, of no fixed address, who admitted inflicting grievous bodily harm on Mr Fearon with intent on September 16.

Judge Rupert Overbury adjourned sentence until next Wednesday.

The court heard Tarabi, who was known by the nickname “Savage” had come to Ipswich last summer and had been at a house in Prospect Street, Ipswich, with Mr Fearon and a number of other people when the stabbing took place.

Mr Jackson said witnesses described Tarabi drinking vodka and cider and becoming loud and aggressive while Mr Fearon was described as being relaxed. .

At around 10pm Tarabi told Mr Fearon he was being bullied and Mr Fearon had said he was not interested.

Tarabi had then pulled out a knife and stabbed Mr Fearon once, in what Mr Jackson described as an “entirely unprovoked attack” before running off.

Tarabi later told police he had been held captive by Fearon prior to the incident and had been forced to sell drugs, but police found no evidence was found of this.

Richard Kelly, for Tarabi, said the knife his client used was in the room where the attack took place and it was not premeditated.