Carlos Asencio, 32, was convicted of first-degree murder on an eight-day trial after he brutally stabbed his ex-girlfriend, Amanda Dabrowski, 31, 58 times at a Massachusetts restaurant where she was attending a book club meeting.
He will be handed a life sentence without the possibility of parole, according to Worcester County District Attorney Joseph Early Jr. Asencio was also found guilty of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon in connection to the injury of one of the good Samaritans who tackled him. Dabrowski’s family expressed their relief in a statement released through the DA’s office, Boston.com reported. They said that the verdict brought some justice, even though there are no winners. Early expressed his condolences for their loss and thanked the good Samaritans for their brave actions.
The incident happened on July 3, 2019. Witnesses said Asencio had two knives and proceeded to stab Dabrowski multiple times in the front of her torso from behind. The good Samaritans then held him down until police arrived and arrested him. One of the good Samaritans, Allen Noble Corson, Jr., was stabbed in the struggle and managed to slip away, bleeding heavily. The Carnegie Hero Fund Commission honored Corson’s courage with a recognition.
Asencio’s defense attorney put forward an insanity defense, claiming that his client had psychosis at the time of the murder and could not be held legally liable, however prosecutors and a psychiatrist for the state opposed the claim.
Before the stabbing, Asencio was suspected of breaking into Dabrowski’s home and attacking her with a stun gun. She was able to fight off the assailant and Asencio fled to Canada, boarding a flight to Mexico. Two weeks before the stabbing, a couple encountered Asencio in Worcester and allowed him to stay with them in an abandoned warehouse.