Doctors reveal Angel Lynn’s devastating injuries after woman paralysed as she fell out of boyfriend’s van
DOCTORS have revealed the devastating injuries Angel Lynn suffered as she fell out of a van in a horror kidnapping at the hands of her ex.
Angel, 22, was grabbed grab from behind and bundled into the car by Chay Bowskill, 20, before she tragically fell headfirst at 60mph onto a dual carriageway and suffered catastrophic brain injuries.
Her parents Nikki, 48, and Patrick, 53, were told their daughter would not survive the September 2020 attack.
But the young woman has since defied the odds – with her mum revealing how she has stood up despite doctors fearing she would never be able to walk, talk or feed herself after the kidnap.
Now, horrifying CT scans have revealed the extent of the injuries the young woman suffered – with her skull fractured from top to bottom following the tragedy.
In a clip from Channel 4’s The Kidnap of Angel Lynn, Stuart Smith, a consultant neurosurgeon, said it was immediately clear that she had suffered “very severe” injuries.
Showing CT scans of Angel’s head, he said: “This area here is fractured, it’s been split open from the force of the impact.
“To fracture the skull to that degree takes an incredible degree of force.
“Her injury was so devastating and so severe, there was a very real chance that Angel wouldn’t survive.”
How you can get help
Women's Aid has this advice for victims and their families:
- Always keep your phone nearby.
- Get in touch with charities for help, including the Women’s Aid live chat helpline and services such as SupportLine.
- If you are in danger, call 999.
- Familiarise yourself with the Silent Solution, reporting abuse without speaking down the phone, instead dialing “55”.
- Always keep some money on you, including change for a pay phone or bus fare.
- If you suspect your partner is about to attack you, try to go to a lower-risk area of the house – for example, where there is a way out and access to a telephone.
- Avoid the kitchen and garage, where there are likely to be knives or other weapons. Avoid rooms where you might become trapped, such as the bathroom, or where you might be shut into a cupboard or other small space.
If you are a victim of domestic abuse, SupportLine is open Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 6pm to 8pm on 01708 765200. The charity’s email support service is open weekdays and weekends during the crisis – messageinfo@supportline.org.uk.
Women’s Aid provides a live chat service – available weekdays from 8am-6pm and weekends 10am-6pm.
You can also call the freephone 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.
Two cracks appear to have split Angel’s skull following the high speed impact in Leicestershire.
One runs down the left side of her face to her ear, while a second stretches from her temple across her forehead and into her eye socket.
Meanwhile a CT scan from the front shows trauma to the left of her nose, her left eye socket and cheeks.
Despite the devastating injuries, Angel, now 22, has not only defied medics by pulling through, she has gone on to exceed all expectations in her recovery.
Devoted mum Nikki, from Loughborough, Leicestershire, said her daughter has now been able to stand for the first time since the attack.
How you can get help
Women's Aid has this advice for victims and their families:
- Always keep your phone nearby.
- Get in touch with charities for help, including the Women’s Aid live chat helpline and services such as SupportLine.
- If you are in danger, call 999.
- Familiarise yourself with the Silent Solution, reporting abuse without speaking down the phone, instead dialing “55”.
- Always keep some money on you, including change for a pay phone or bus fare.
- If you suspect your partner is about to attack you, try to go to a lower-risk area of the house – for example, where there is a way out and access to a telephone.
- Avoid the kitchen and garage, where there are likely to be knives or other weapons. Avoid rooms where you might become trapped, such as the bathroom, or where you might be shut into a cupboard or other small space.
If you are a victim of domestic abuse, SupportLine is open Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 6pm to 8pm on 01708 765200. The charity’s email support service is open weekdays and weekends during the crisis – messageinfo@supportline.org.uk.
Women’s Aid provides a live chat service – available weekdays from 8am-6pm and weekends 10am-6pm.
You can also call the freephone 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.
Nikki exclusively told The Sun: “She is communicating more and more.
“I know it won’t change things but I’m hoping one day she will speak and tell me what happened.”
And touching footage shows the young woman managing to sign to her mother – telling her that she loves her.
Angel’s ex Bowskill was sentenced to seven-and-a-half years in prison after being found guilty of kidnap, coercive and controlling behaviour, and perverting the course of justice.
Last May Court of Appeal judges increased his sentence to 12 years after they concluded his original term for the kidnap was not long enough.
During his trial at Leicester Crown Court, the prosecution failed to prove Angel was thrown or pushed out of the vehicle — driven by Bowskill’s friend Rocco Sansome, 20.
Bowskill claimed Angel jumped or fell out accidentally on to the road — something that mum-of-six Nikki refuses to accept.
She says: “I do think she was pushed because of the injuries she suffered, the force with which she hit the ground.”
Nikki says her daughter’s head “bounced like a football” and she rolled for nearly 50 metres.
Bowskill and Sansome — who was also found guilty of kidnap and is now out of prison after being sentenced to 21 months — then drove off, leaving Angel for dead on the A6 near Loughborough.
Kidnapped: the Angel Lynn Story is on Channel 4 at 9pm.