When he saw another man go into his ex-girlfriend’s apartment, a Cobb County man used a knife to enter the apartment before brutally stabbing the man several times, according to prosecutors.
Gabriel Emanuel Brazil then left the apartment, leaving a trail of blood all the way to his apartment upstairs. Brazil, 30, was arrested on Christmas Eve, one day after he stabbed Jason Johnson three times, lacerating his heart, kidney and liver and leaving his intestines exposed, the district attorney’s office said.
On Monday, Brazil pleaded guilty to aggravated assault, aggravated battery and drug charges and was sentenced to 40 years, with 16 years to serve in custody and the rest on probation, Cobb DA Vic Reynolds said. Brazil was also ordered to pay $89,000 in restitution to Johnson, who spent a month and a half in the hospital and did not have medical insurance when he was injured.
“This is essentially a domestic-violence case, because this defendant sought to maintain power and control over his former girlfriend,” ADA Sherwin Figueroa said in an emailed statement. “Although he had no violent history, his possessiveness and jealousy led him to stab and permanently scar an innocent person.”
When Cobb police were called to the Marietta-area apartments on Dec. 23, 2014, a blood trail led them to Brazil’s apartment, where officers found a marijuana growing operation and methamphetamines, investigators said.
Johnson, who was 29 at the time of the assault, told the court during Monday’s plea hearing that the attack was traumatic and devastating, both emotionally and financially. He also has permanent scars from the nearly fatal attack, he told the court.
Brazil has been in the Cobb jail since his arrest.
About the Author
