Juan Bravo-Torres: Killer faces DEATH PENALTY after stabbing 3-year-old daughter to death
LONGWOOD, FLORIDA: Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against a man who allegedly attacked his two young daughters in a bloody, fatal stabbing. Juan Bravo-Torres, 39, was indicted on Tuesday, August 9, 2022, on charges of first-degree premeditated murder and attempted murder stemming from the inconceivable attack on his children on July 21, 2022, in Longwood, Florida. Prosecutors identified the slain child as Eva Bravo-Herrera, 3. Her 12-year-old sister survived, albeit in critical condition.
The surviving 12-year-old girl woke up in July to find her father attacking her with a knife, police have said. When detectives interviewed Bravo-Torres’ older daughter, she told them she was sleeping in her brother’s room when her father reached for her neck. Defendant Bravo-Torres allegedly went to get another knife. The girl left the room and found her younger sister on the hallway floor. When police arrived at the scene, they found a large amount of blood inside and then located Bravo-Torres lying unconscious in the bathroom with extensive injuries to his torso. According to New York Post, the dad apparently tried to kill himself by slashing his wrists and cutting his throat after allegedly butchering his toddler but he survived and was jailed.
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“The victim stated her dad came at her with a knife but that she fought him back and eventually acted as if she was dead in hopes he would stop attacking her,” police said. “The victim stated that after she played dead, her father dragged her and her little sister into the hall bathroom. The victim stated her dad turned off the lights in the bathroom but then she witnessed him cut his wrists and heard what sounded like he was cutting his throat.”
In the same bathroom, police found Eva, dead from knife wounds. The 12-year-old lay there, waiting for the suspect to fall unconscious, officers said. Once she believed he was out, she took the knife for protection, locked the bathroom from the inside, and fled to the McDonald’s where her mother worked, cops said.
Neighbors have left memorial items at a Longwood home where a father is accused of killing his 3-year-old daughter, critically injuring his 12-year-old daughter and stabbing himself.
— Jeff Allen (@News13JeffAllen) July 22, 2022
Records show Juan Bravo-Torres was arrested in 2011 for domestic violence.
@MyNews13 pic.twitter.com/gPMysQiQuc
Bravo-Torres missed a court date last month because he had to undergo “emergency surgery.” An apparent scar is visible below his neck in his current Seminole County mugshot. He remains locked up on the case as well on an ICE detainer, records show, according to Law&Crime.
The suspect pleaded not guilty on July 27. His arraignment is set for August 30, 2022. Longwood police Sgt Derek Chenoweth later praised the 12-year-old girl for her quick thinking and bravery under horrifying circumstances. “The amount of courage this 12-year-old young lady had is just remarkable,” he said. “Grown adults may not have been able to come to that decision. And this 12-year-old did that, and she is alive today because of the choices that she made.”
If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please contact the National Suicide Hotline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).