FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, March 26, 2026
Brooklyn Man Sentenced to 25 Years to Life in Prison for Breaking into Elderly Neighbor’s Apartment and Sexually Assaulting Her
Defendant Strangled Victim Twice, Causing Her to Lose Consciousness
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez today announced that a Crown Heights man has been sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for breaking into the home of his 81-year-old neighbor while she slept, strangling her twice until she lost consciousness and sexually assaulting her inside her residence, causing severe injuries and brain damage.
District Attorney Gonzalez said, “This defendant broke into the home of an 81-year-old woman in the middle of the night and subjected her to a brutal, terrifying assault that left lasting injuries and stole from her the safety she deserved in her own home. Today’s sentence ensures he will spend many years behind bars for the devastating harm he caused. My heart is with this survivor, whose courage throughout this case has been extraordinary, and we will continue to pursue justice for anyone who targets the most vulnerable members of our communities.”
The District Attorney identified the defendant as Thomas Johnson, 54, of Brownsville, Brooklyn. He was sentenced today by Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Donald Leo to 25 years to life in prison. The defendant was convicted of first-degree burglary, first-degree sexual abuse, second-degree assault as a sexually motivated felony and second-degree strangulation as a sexually motivated felony on January 20, 2026, following a jury trial.
The District Attorney said that, according to the evidence, on September 27, 2022, at approximately 3 a.m., the 81-year-old victim was asleep in her bedroom inside her Crown Heights residence when she was awakened by a loud noise. When she got out of bed, the victim observed the defendant inside her second bedroom and asked the defendant what he was doing there. The defendant grabbed her and began strangling and physically assaulting her, causing her to lose consciousness. When she regained consciousness, she realized that she no longer had underwear on.
As she attempted to crawl for help, the defendant came up behind her and put his hands around her neck and applied pressure, strangling her until she lost consciousness a second time. When the victim again regained consciousness, she was able to crawl to the front door of her apartment and call out for help. The woman’s upstairs neighbors, who are related to the defendant, came down to help and called 911. The defendant was arrested in a hallway outside the victim’s residence.
As a result of the attack, the victim suffered pain in her neck, difficulty breathing, swelling to her face, extensive hemorrhaging in her eyes, bleeding from her mouth and nose, a dislocated jaw and injuries to her genitals. The strangulations deprived her brain of oxygen for a significant period, causing brain damage that reduced the level of self-sufficiency she had prior to the attack.
The District Attorney thanked Talia Orband of the Victim Services Unit for her assistance in this case.
The case was prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Daniel Brian Newcombe and Assistant District Attorney Elizabeth Gomez, with the assistance of Supervising Paralegal Jennifer Hernandez, of the District Attorney’s Special Victims Bureau, under the supervision of Assistant District Attorney Perry Cerrato, Deputy Bureau Chief, Assistant District Attorney Olatokunbo Olaniyan, 1st Deputy Bureau Chief, and under the overall supervision of Assistant District Attorney Miss Gregory, Bureau Chief.
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