Cleveland - Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael C. O’Malley has announced that a Grand Jury returned an indictment charging 26-year-old Armond Johnson for the July 8th murders of 35-year-old David Cousin, 25-year-old Takeyra Collins, six-year-old Armond Johnson Jr. and two-year-old Aubree Stone on East 63rd street in Cleveland’s Slavic Village neighborhood. The indictment contains a number of aggravating specifications, any one of which make the case capital eligible.
“Armond Johnson brutally murdered four people including his own son,” said Prosecutor O’Malley. “His callous actions demand that he face the ultimate punishment.”
On July 8th, 2019, Johnson shot and killed Collins inside her residence before setting the house on fire and fleeing the scene. Johnson returned to the crime scene early the following morning and shot and killed Cousin, Collins’ neighbor, in a vacant field adjacent to his residence. The Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner’s Office determined that Collins’ two children died as a direct result of the fire Johnson set.
Johnson has been indicted on the following charges:
- 14 counts of Aggravated Murder
- 4 counts of Aggravated Arson
- 2 counts of Aggravated Burglary
- 2 counts of Endangering Children
- 2 counts of Having Weapons Under Disability
- 1 count of Kidnapping
- 1 count of Tampering With Evidence
The Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office’s Capital Review Committee (CRC) evaluates each capital-eligible case to determine whether to include death penalty specifications. CRC members conducted an initial review of the facts and circumstances of Johnson’s case and decided to include death penalty specifications in the presentment to a Grand Jury. There will be an opportunity to conduct an additional review as the case progresses.
Arraignment is scheduled for Thursday, July 25th at 8:30am at the Cuyahoga County Justice Center.
Photo courtesy of Cleveland Police Department
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