A criminal justice advocate who was a supposedly reformed felon is behind bars after police found the dismembered body of his victim.
Criminal justice advocate suspected of grizzly murder
Collin Small, 44, was allegedly slain by Sheldon Johnson, 48, a well-known activist for criminal justice reform, on Tuesday evening in the victim’s Bronx, New York City apartment.
Surveillance footage captured Johnson’s suspicious movements, showing him entering the apartment clad in a dark coat over a yellow hoodie, while carrying cleaning supplies.
According to the New York Post, witnesses recounted hearing Small’s desperate pleas before gunfire erupted, followed by Johnson’s departure in Small’s car.
He was spotted by neighbors later, when he returned in an Uber, despite attempting to disguise his identity with a blond wig. Johnson reportedly arrived with a blue bin, which he did not take when leaving the scene.
This behavior raised suspicions among neighbors and the building superintendent, who remarked that Johnson’s changing appearance and odd demeanor was “not normal.”
Oddly, the suspect attempted to call the building superintendent to Small’s apartment, but the police had already responded to the scene and arrested him.
In retrospect, the building employee believes that Johnson may have wanted him to scrub security footage of his presence at the crime scene… Or possibly to frame him. “If I’d gone, you never know what he was going to do,” he remarked.
Instead, he alerted authorities to the bin allegedly brought into the residence by Johnson. Inside, police made the chilling discovery of Small’s torso, while his decapitated head, legs, and an arm were being preserved in the freezer.
Criminal justice advocate not so reformed after decades in prison
Johnson is no newcomer to crime, he did a 25-year stint at Westchester County’s Sing Sing prison, where he reportedly knew Small, also a former inmate, from.
Despite his troubled past, Johnson’s post-release activities painted him as reformed from his time behind bars.
He reportedly worked with Queens Defenders, a local public law firm, and gained recognition as a public advocate, even appearing on Joe Rogan’s podcast last month.
Johnson has been photographed with prominent figures in New York through his work, appearing alongside Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and the CFO of the Brooklyn Nets in images he shared on his Instagram page.
He was charged with second-degree murder for Small’s alleged execution, and is being held without bail in a New York City jail. Johnson will appear in court on March 11.
