A Croydon man is facing jail for stabbing a man with learning difficulties in the stomach after his victim refused to sell drugs for him.

The victim, a 28-year-old man with learning difficulties, was left fighting for his life after the “horrendous” attack, which took place in his own home in Camberwell on Monday, December 28.

Michael Nkrumah, 20, of Thornton Heath, was found guilty of grievous bodily harm on Wednesday, July 27, after a 19-day trial at Blackfriars Crown Court.

He had visited the flat alongside the victim’s ex-girlfriend Shaniqua Pettifor, 23, and three other suspects on the day of the assault.

When they arrived they demanded money from the man and told him to sell drugs for them.

When he refused, Pettifor produced a knife and stabbed him in the hand before Nkrumah stabbed him in the stomach.

Pettifor, of Kennington Park Road, in Southwark, pleaded guilty to causing actual bodily harm at Croydon Crown Court on Monday, April 25 and will be sentenced alongside Nkrumah at Blackfriars Crown Court this Friday.

The victim was left with wounds so severe he needed a life-saving emergency operation, a police spokesman said.

When his attackers had fled the scene, he called his mother, who in turn called an ambulance, and was still able to make his way to her home despite his injuries.

Officers from Southwark borough launched an investigation and Nkrumah was arrested three days later and charged on Friday, January 1.

Pettifor was arrested on 30 December 2015 and subsequently charged on Monday, February 1.

The three other suspects have yet to be identified by police.

Detective Constable Sophie Lugar-Mawson, of Southwark CID, said: "This was a vile attack on a vulnerable man.

These people sought to exploit and manipulate him by taking his money and demanding he sell drugs for them. When he refused they carried out a vicious attack that could have taken his life.

"The team at Southwark CID and I are glad the two people responsible for directly committing such a horrendous attack have been brought to justice.

“It is important those who are vulnerable are protected and criminals who seek to exploit them face the consequences of their actions."