Lansdale man sentenced for stabbing incident

NORRISTOWN » A Lansdale man will be under court supervision for several years in connection with the stabbing of another man in the borough.

Randall A. Stewart, 32, of the 700 block of South Broad Street, was sentenced in Montgomery County Court to 11½ to 23 months’ time served after he pleaded guilty to a felony charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in connection with a Jan. 25, 2019, incident.

Judge Thomas C. Branca, who accepted a plea agreement in the case, also ordered Stewart to complete four years’ probation following parole, meaning Stewart will be under court supervision for about six years. The judge said Stewart should be evaluated for mental health supervision during the parole and probationary periods.

As a condition of the sentence, the judge ordered Stewart to have no contact with the victim of the stabbing.

The judge indicated Stewart won’t be released from the jail until a parole plan is devised and his address is verified. Stewart also must pay $3,850 in restitution in connection with the case.

Other charges of simple assault, recklessly endangering another person, possession of an instrument of crime, defiant trespassing and loitering and prowling at night were dismissed against Stewart as part of the plea agreement.

The investigation began about 7:43 p.m. Jan. 25, when Lansdale police responded to the Broadmore Apartments located in the 600 block of South Broad Street for a report of a stabbing. Upon arrival, officers met with the victim who reported he was stabbed in his back as he walked toward the side door of his apartment building, according to a criminal complaint.

The victim told police he had been walking to his apartment when he observed a person wearing dark clothing. As the victim passed the person, he was stabbed in the back, and the suspect then fled on foot, according to court papers.

The victim called police, and when officers arrived they found the victim had “a small-sized stab wound that was bleeding uncontrollably” in the middle of his back. The victim was taken to a local hospital for treatment, according to police.

Less than an hour later, according to police, an officer conducted a pedestrian stop of Stewart, who matched the description of the attacker that was provided by the victim. Officers found a knife in Stewart’s

jacket pocket and learned that Stewart previously had been warned not to be on the property of the Broadmore Apartments, according to the arrest affidavit.

Stewart denied stabbing

the victim. However, DNA analysis determined the victim’s DNA was found on the knife that was in Stewart’s possession, according to the criminal complaint.

“The victim has never

met Stewart prior to this incident. The knife Stewart possessed contained the victim’s DNA profile,” Lansdale Detective Joseph Gary alleged in the criminal complaint.