Joshua Bowles pleaded guilty to attempted murder at the Old Bailey after stabbing a woman outside a Cheltenham leisure centre because he thought she worked at GCHQ.
At a hearing on Wednesday, the 29-year-old confessed to to punching and stabbing the woman who worked for the US government.
He was armed with two knives when he started the attack at 9.15 p.m. on March 9 as the victim was leaving the Tommy Taylors Lane leisure centre with a companion.
The location is just three miles from the UK intelligence agency’s Cheltenham headquarters.
Following an inquiry by counter-terror police, he was charged with attempted murder as well as attacking a man and inflicting him actual bodily harm.
She was employed by the US government and stationed at GCHQ at the time of the event, according to the court.
Bowles, of Welwyn Mews in Cheltenham, targeted his victim, who is only identified by the code number ‘99230’ in the charges, because he believed she worked at GCHQ and represented the state.
The victim was transported to the hospital after being stabbed many times during the incident.
After being approached in the parking lot, Bowles assaulted a man named Alex Fuentes.
Following the hearing on Wednesday, Nick Price, head of the CPS Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division, said: “This extremely violent attack against two innocent people was completely unprovoked.
“It is right that those who commit violent crimes like this should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law to protect the public, and our thoughts continue to be with the victims and their families.”
Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb told Bowles she hoped he will be sentenced before the end of October.