Wheeling man admits part in 2016 stabbing, gets 5 years
The second of two defendants charged with stabbing a man 27 times last April in Wheeling pleaded guilty Monday.
Javier Brito-Hernandez, 28, of Wheeling pleaded guilty to aggravated battery in exchange for a five-year prison sentence, the maximum available for the felony. He received credit for 344 days in custody.
The victim was sitting behind the wheel of his car on the 300 block of Capri Drive in Wheeling about 3 a.m. April 24, 2016, when Justino Garcia opened the passenger's-side door and began stabbing him, said Cook County Assistant State's Attorney Kristin Piper. The man scrambled out the driver's-side door and attempted to flee, but Garcia chased him down and continued to stab him while Brito-Hernandez punched and kicked him, Piper said.
The man received 100 stitches, 17 staples and was hospitalized for a week.
Garcia, 22, also from Wheeling, pleaded guilty last week to an attempted murder charge in exchange for a 20-year sentence.