Georgia man stabs 15-year-old girl over 80 times and rapes her after they met on Snapchat – Crime Online

A Georgia man will spend the rest of his life behind bars for murdering and raping a 15-year-old girl he met through social media.

According to FOX 5 Atlanta, Zachary Iona, 22, pleaded guilty to rape, aggravated assault, sexual abuse, child abuse and possession of a knife during the commission of a crime. He was sentenced to life imprisonment – 30 years in prison – followed by five years of probation and mandatory registration as a sex offender as part of his negotiated guilty plea.

The victim was tied up, her mouth was taped shut and she was beaten. During the sexual assault, Iona began stabbing her in the face, upper body, neck, legs and arms.

“Because he used a deadly weapon, there are an additional five years. After those five years, he would potentially be eligible for parole. At that point, he would be 57 years old,” said Marcus Garner, spokesman for the Gwinnett County District Attorney’s Office.

Atlanta News First reported that the teenager met Iona on Snapchat in February 2022 and then arranged to meet at her home in Hoschton. While at the victim’s home, he tied Iona’s hands and put duct tape over her mouth before raping her, prosecutors said.

During the attack, Iona stabbed the teenager multiple times before fleeing the scene. The victim managed to crawl to her phone and call for help.

Medical staff found at least 86 stab and cut wounds on her body, prosecutors said.

“During the sexual assault, he began stabbing the teenager in the face, upper body, neck, legs and arms,” ​​the prosecutor added. “Then he fled.”

Police identified Iona from a Snapchat photo and found duct tape, rope and blood in his vehicle.

“This should be a warning to our young people to be cautious,” Gwinnett County District Attorney Patsy Austin-Gatson said in a statement. “As this case shows, not everyone you encounter on social media has our best interests at heart.”

After numerous surgeries and hours of physical therapy, the girl can now walk again. During the hearing, she told the judge that she had recently graduated from high school and considered herself lucky to be alive, prosecutors said.

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(Cover photo: Zachary Iona/Gwinnett PD)