Cops: Cobb man tried to light paralyzed wife on fire in front of 3 grandchildren

Hasson Gabon Boyer

Credit: Cobb County Sheriff's Office

Credit: Cobb County Sheriff's Office

Hasson Gabon Boyer

A Kennesaw man is accused of dousing his paralyzed wife in lighter fluid and roach spray before trying to light her on fire in front of their three young grandchildren.

Hasson Gabon Boyer, 58, faces two counts of aggravated assault and three counts of third-degree child cruelty in connection with the Sept. 4 incident, Cobb County jail records show.

Officers were called to a home off Carillon Trace, which is within the Legacy Park community, just after 5:30 p.m., according to a Kennesaw police incident report obtained by AJC.com. When officers knocked, they heard a woman inside the house screaming for help.

The front door was locked, but officers were able to get inside through a garage door, the report said. A naked woman “covered in a liquid substance” was found on a bed, and officers said they smelled a strong chemical odor.

Three children, ages 2, 6, and 8, were sitting on another bed in the room, the report said. Boyer was found in the bathroom, and the officers said he smelled of the same chemical.

When asked what happened, Boyer said his wife would tell them what happened and “whatever his wife said happened is good,” according to the report. He also said he worked for the federal government and was “going to jail for attempted murder.”

The two older children told officers Boyer began pouring lighter fluid on their grandmother, who is paralyzed from the waist down, before spraying her with Raid, the report said. Boyer then allegedly tried and failed to find a lighter before returning with a knife. While he was searching for the lighter, his wife called 911.

He threatened to stab her right leg before running into the bathroom, the report said. The grandmother’s nurse came to the scene and told officers Boyer has had several drug-related issues in the past involving crack cocaine. Boyer and his wife are also allegedly in the process of getting a divorce.

Boyer’s wife told officers they were babysitting their grandchildren when her husband “went crazy,” the report said. She said Boyer told her “she ruined his life, he’s supposed to have a better life than this, and that she set him up.” He was also heavily intoxicated at the time, she told police.

According to Cobb County court records, Boyer has been charged with felonies multiple times before, including counts of aggravated assault, cocaine possession, child cruelty, obstruction and terroristic threats. It appears that all of his charges were either reduced to misdemeanors or ended in nolle prosequi, meaning prosecutors abandoned the case.

Boyer remains in the Cobb County Adult Detention Center without bond, jail records show.

In other news: