A woman who stabbed two men in separate attacks, using a blade to slice her name into the back of one victim and slitting his wrists to stage self-harm, could walk free from prison.
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On Tuesday, Theresa Ann Coss, 40, pleaded guilty to unlawful wounding and committing a malicious act with intent in Brisbane Supreme Court.
Her first attack was on her ex-boyfriend at their home after New Year's Eve celebrations in 2019 at Peregian Beach on Queensland's Sunshine Coast.
The pair had separated but still shared a house when Coss followed her intoxicated former lover into the master bedroom.
She teased him with her dressing gown cord, flicking his legs before binding him with it and rubbing his chest with baby oil.
After her ex fell asleep, she used a knife to slice her name into his back, drawing blood from the wounds.
She then tied his hands and cut his wrists with a knife, leaving 6cm long gashes.
When he woke in pain, she claimed he had tried to self-harm and that she had saved him.
"Oh my God, oh my God, what have you done?" Coss told her victim.
"What have you done, darling? You tried to commit suicide again. I saved you. I saved your life."
Prosecutor David Meredith told the court the victim had no history of self-harm or suicidal thoughts, and police charged Coss with unlawful wounding.
While still on bail for the first attack, Coss moved to the Kulangoor caravan park on Nambour Connection Rd where she attacked her neighbour three months later with two knives, a hammer and a broomstick.
The man was stabbed multiple times to his head, torso and legs, and beaten in March 2019.
During the prolonged assault, Coss warned her neighbour to stop fighting because "no one would hear his cries for help", the court was told.
"You are going to go to another world. You are going to die," Coss promised her victim.
"You are going to a better world than this one."
Coss then turned on the caravan's gas line before placed their mobile phones in a microwave to set the van alight before locking him inside as she escaped on foot.
Nearby residents raised the alarm after hearing his frantic calls for help and took Coss in custody before authorities arrived.
Defence barrister Laura Reece said Coss had a history of mental illness and used drugs before both attacks.
Justice David Boddice described the attacks as "bizarre and disturbing".
He accepted Coss had served two-and-a-half years in custody and suffered from serious mental health conditions combined with a troubled upbringing.
"You self-medicated with drugs and became a danger to those around you," the judge said.
Coss was handed an eight-year sentence with Justice Boddice ordering she be eligible for immediate parole.
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Australian Associated Press
