Man who stabbed victim more than twenty times is jailed for attempt murder
A violent assault which saw a man sustain more than 20 knife wounds has resulted in the offender being jailed for 15 years. John Brazil repeatedly used the weapon to assault the victim while he was visiting their Rushenden home in November 2018. He was arrested in a Derbyshire bedsit three and a half weeks later after appearing on Kent Police’s list of Most Wanted criminals. The 23-year-old, of no fixed address, denied attempted murder but was found guilty following a trial at Maidstone Crown Court and an investigation by the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate. He was sentenced at the same court on Friday 18 October. The court heard Brazil and the victim were known to each other prior to the assault taking place and met, by chance, at a Sittingbourne nightclub on the night of Saturday 10 and Sunday 11 November 2018. The pair had been acquaintances for around a decade but, prior to bumping into each other, had not been in contact for several years. They spent the night socialising and this led to Brazil attending the victim’s house where they continued to talk. Shortly after midday a dispute took place in the living room. During the altercation Brazil used a knife to inflict more than 20 wounds across the victim’s body – the most serious of which was a stab wound to the chest. Privately held CCTV cameras captured the victim walking away from his house to seek help from a neighbour, with Brazil walking aggressively behind him before he disappeared from view. The victim was airlifted to a London hospital where he required urgent treatment but has since made a full recovery. Numerous witnesses identified Brazil as being the outstanding offender however he immediately went into hiding. Investigating officers issued a public wanted persons appeal to locate the offender and he was eventually arrested at a bedsit in Buxton on 5 December. He has been remanded in custody since his arrest. Detective Constable Andrew Jobes, Kent Police’s investigating officer for the case, said: ‘Brazil subjected his victim to a savage attack which left him with serious injuries that required urgent medical attention. ‘His willingness to suddenly and repeatedly use a weapon on a person he had been socialising with shows him to a volatile and highly dangerous offender. ‘There can be no tolerance for people who choose to use a weapon to assault another individual and we will always take the most robust approach possible to ensure such offenders receive justice. ‘I am pleased that we have been able to secure a strong custodial sentence which means Brazil is unable to harm other innocent members of the public.’
