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Sacramento jury convicts man of murder after fatal stabbing at South Natomas apartment

A Sacramento County jury on Tuesday convicted a man for a 2020 stabbing death at a South Natomas apartment, where the victim was found with his neck slashed and 25 stab wounds.

Fabrizio Leal, 29, was found guilty of first-degree murder in the death of Nico Carmona, along with an enhancement for using a deadly weapon, the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office announced Wednesday in a news release.

About 8:30 a.m. on March 11, 2020, officers were called to the apartment in 1900 block of San Juan Road, just east of Brandon Way, for a report that a man had been stabbed, the Sacramento Police Department has said. Officers found Carmona, who was pronounced dead at the scene by medics.

Prosecutors said officers found Carmona on the kitchen floor with his body wrapped in a blanket, his legs placed in a laundry hamper and his head and shoulders covered with a plastic garbage bag.

Carmona’s neck had been slashed, and he had also suffered more than 25 stab wounds to his upper body, according to the District Attorney’s Office.

Police said Leal and Carmona knew each other. Leal was detained at the scene and later arrested on suspicion of murder.

Prosecutors said the only people in the apartment at the time of the fatal stabbing was Carmona, Leal and Leal’s 2-year-old son.

Leal, who did not live in the apartment, later admitted to stabbing Carmona with a switchblade-style knife, according to the District Attorney’s Office. Investigators recovered the knife at the crime scene.

Leal remained in custody Wednesday afternoon at Sacramento County Jail. Prosecutors say he faces a maximum sentence of 26 years to life in prison. Leal’s sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 7 in Sacramento Superior Court.