A Navy Vet Smoked Crack and Went on a Bender. Then, He Got in a Fight and Used a Dumbbell to Kill a Person.

A Navy veteran used crack and went on a bender. It ended when he beat a victim to death with a dumbbell.

The former vet now is behind bars.

Jason Jablonski pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter during an appearance in a Virginia court. He was sentenced to serve 10 years in prison, with four years and four months suspended, according to WAVY.

In March 2022, police were called to a home in the Virginia Beach area where they found 45-year-old Herbert Bryant dead. Investigators said Jablonski was on a “crack bender” and got into a fight with the victim inside the home, according to the Virginian-Pilot.

During the fight, Jablonski hit Bryant in the face with a dumbbell and then pushed it down on his neck until he died, according to the report.

There was no word on what led to the fight.

Jablonski was a 12-year veteran of the Navy when the killing happened.

A neighbor told WAVY shortly after the incident that they never had a problem with the vet.

“I never saw him violent, no drugs, and I saw him most times out in the street with his children playing.” Tyrone Hall told the station at the time.

Another neighbor, Doug Harrison, agreed and said it didn’t fit the person he knew. He recounted how Jablonski had helped him after his car got vandalized, according to WAVY.

“I am almost speechless. I can’t believe it. It doesn’t sound like him at all. I wouldn’t have believed it if it wasn’t you telling me this… I can’t believe he did something like that. I had sympathy for the guy who lost his life, but I just can’t believe he did that,” Harrison said.