A man prosecutors say stalked a 13-year-old girl, tattooed her name all over himself and shot her father has been sentenced to 20 years in prison, in one of Dallas County’s most severe stalking cases.
Gabriel Ramirez, 23, was sentenced Thursday in a Dallas County courtroom after previously pleading guilty to charges of stalking and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
Ramirez called a 13-year-old teen girl numerous times, sent her flowers before her birthday and went to her house only to be told by her father to go away, according to an affadavit.
Ramirez returned to her house in early June 2013, and when her father answered the door, Ramirez shot him three times, hitting him in the chest, liver and stomach.
The girl's father survived but has nearly $90,000 in medical bills after two surgeries. He said his life will never be the same.
What may have startled prosecutors the most were nearly a dozen tattoos Ramirez had all over his body with the young girl’s name, her birthday and even her address.
NBC 5 is blurring photos of the tattoos in order to hide the victim's identity.
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In court, Ramirez said he regrets the tattoos, which he said were all done under the heavy influence of drugs. He also said he was using cocaine, heroin, marijuana laced with PCP, Xanax, methamphetamine and alcohol the day he shot the young girl’s father.
Assistant District Attorney Leighton D’Antoni said the stalking didn’t stop when Ramirez was jailed. Ramirez sent numerous letters professing his love to the girl, as well as a letter to her mother and her father from behind bars, D'Antoni said.
“We’re talking about an adult who starts on a 13-year-old girl and stalks her,” said D’Antoni. “I think there were 11 total tattoos of her name that he started putting on his body when, again, she was just 13-years-old. That’s more than a red flag. That’s scary.”
