A man will serve 28 years in prison for a fatal stabbing that took place in Rockville, Maryland in 2020 — an act that witnesses said was spurred by an argument over $20.
A Montgomery County Circuit Court judge sentenced 43-year-old Jaime Havier Lee to 40 years in prison with all suspended but 28 years to serve, as well as five years of supervised probation upon release, on Friday.
Lee was convicted of second-degree murder by a jury in May.
According to a statement of charges, Lee showed up to an apartment at 715 Lenmore Avenue in Rockville on May 2, 2020 and got into an argument with 36-year-old Cornelius Lyon. Witnesses said the two men’s dispute was over $20.
The fight escalated and Lee stabbed Lyon in the face, chest, left arm and back before fleeing the scene.
Lyon left to seek help, according to witnesses, but died of his injuries a short distance away on the 100 block of Frederick Avenue. A Montgomery County detective followed a trail of Lyon’s blood back to the apartment where the stabbing occurred, according to the statement of charges.
Rockville city patrol officers found Lee at Veirs Mill Road and First Avenue, nearby the apartment building on Lenmore Avenue. The statement of charges said a witness of the stabbing, who knew Lee as “Kane,” identified him to police, who then arrested him.