On a quiet Barrister Lane in Palm Coast, a casual stroll turned into a shocking ordeal for a young woman and her boyfriend. The couple, in their early twenties, were approached by 56-year-old Eric Philip Galdabini, who, from his Jeep, offered the woman a ride not once, but twice. The woman, identified as J.G., declined each time. When her boyfriend stepped in to tell Galdabini to leave, the situation took an alarming turn.
Not heeding the boyfriend’s request, Galdabini parked his vehicle and confronted him. What followed was a physical altercation that was caught on a Ring surveillance video. Galdabini, in a violent escalation, attempted to punch the boyfriend, who defended himself. The encounter took an even darker turn when Galdabini stabbed the boyfriend with a knife. The injuries sustained, while not life-threatening, were serious enough to warrant treatment by Flagler County Fire-Rescue.
Following the incident, sheriff’s deputies performed a high-risk traffic stop and arrested Galdabini. He now faces a second-degree felony charge of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and a third-degree felony charge of battery. His bond has been set at $40,000. Despite the severity of his charges, Galdabini claimed he only intended to be helpful by offering rides. He also stated that the boyfriend attacked him first, and he used his pocket knife, which he typically uses for fishing, in self-defense.
This is not Galdabini’s first brush with the law. In 2010, he had pleaded to a misdemeanor battery count and served 14 days in jail. Sheriff Rick Staly noted that the attack seemed to be random, as the victim and the attacker did not know each other. The incident serves as a stark reminder of the lurking dangers in even the most peaceful of neighborhoods.
