This shocking image captures the moment a jealous handyman prepares to stab his love rival three times.

Gary Fry, 39, was captured on CCTV swinging a knife at the body of Justin Morrison.

The pair had been friends but Fry had been ‘festering’ on some texts he had been shown linking his girlfriend with the victim.

Exeter Crown Court was told he just ‘snapped’.

The CCTV is too graphic to show but police have shared an image taken just a few moments after Fry takes his hands from his pockets and prepares to turn to attack Mr Morrison.

The defendant was jailed for four years after admitting causing grievous bodily harm with intent.

The judge said: “You were an ace away from killing Mr Morrison.

“The knife may have fatally injured him - if it had been perhaps a centimetre or two one side of the other.”

The incident happened on January 29.

Gary Fry
Gary Fry

Fry, a former drug addict with 99 previous crimes to his name, had been getting help at Newton Lodge, in Torquay. He had done so well that he was kept on there as a handyman.

Prosecutor, Mr James Taghdissian, said that two or three weeks before the incident the defendant’s girlfriend, Rachel Clark, turned up at Mr Morrison’s room asking for sex. Mr Morrison said no and later assured Fry that nothing had happened.

There appeared to be no falling out between the men prior to the stabbing.

Newton Lodge in Torquay's Newton Road

CCTV showed Fry standing in the communal area of the lodge while Mr Morrison drank a cup of tea close by and filled up a cigarette lighter.

Fry then suddenly turned round and stabbed Mr Morrison three times.

He suffered a 2cm wound to the stomach and a 3cm wound to the leg which he raised to protect himself. The wounds were stitched at hospital and he was released that day.

Mr Morrison is seen retreating to another room before falling onto the floor. Fry fled out of sight of the camera.

The victim told police he could not understand why Fry had attacked him.

Mr Ali Rafati, defending, said Fry was deeply sorry for what he had done. He wanted to apologise to the victim.

He said Fry had the knife with him for work.

He said he ‘very sadly lost his temper for a few seconds’ after being shown texts that something had happened between the victim and his girlfriend.

Judge David Evans said the offence happened, 'Following the receipt of some information connecting your girlfriend to Mr Morrison in some way'.

"It shouldn’t have given rise to anything other than a friendly chat.

“It seems you had let things get to you and I’ve watched the CCTV footage of what happened. It shows you standing by the entrance to the communal room in the hallway of the lodge and Mr Morrison comes by a couple of times to interact.

“You have your hands in your pockets and in one of those pockets must have been a knife. It seems as Mr Morrison stood in the hallway filling a cigarette lighter and posing no threat whatsoever his continued presence got on your nerves a little.

“Clearly things were festering in your brain and there came a moment when you snapped.”