On March 5, 2024, 44-year-old Collin Small was shot and killed in his sixth-floor Highbridge apartment in the Bronx, New York City. NYPD officers discovered Small's dismembered torso and feet stashed in a freezer and blue bin during a wellness check later the same day; his cause of death was a single gunshot to the head. Sheldon Johnson Jr., 48, who was found inside the apartment at the time and was recorded by surveillance cameras going in and out of the building, was charged with Small's murder, as well as manslaughter, weapon possession and concealment of a corpse. Johnson, a former Bloods gang member and criminal justice activist, had been released early from Sing Sing on May 4, 2023, after serving 25 years of a 50-year sentence he received for an act of attempted murder during a robbery. Small's head, legs and one of his arms were later recovered at Johnson's apartment in Harlem.
Murder Collin Small was last seen alive at around 10 p.m. on March 4 by the building superintendent of Small's apartment complex. Surveillance footage showed Small entering his apartment by himself. The next morning, the superintendent was called by a tenant who reported hearing two gunshots at around 1 a.m., after which she had heard a man shouting "Please don't, I have a family", followed by another two shots. The superintendent checked the CCTV on Small's floor, which had captured a man later identified as Sheldon Johnson repeatedly exiting and entering the apartment in different clothes, including hats, a blond wig and the same outfit the victim had been wearing when he entered the apartment, returning with cleaning supplies and a blue bin, in which parts of Small's body were later found. The superintendent called 911 at 11:30 a.m. to conduct a wellness check, which occurred at 8:25 p.m. and upon arrival, the officers were met with Johnson, who claimed that Small had "gone upstate". Johnson was taken into custody after a search recovered human body parts later identified as belonging to Small in the apartment. Police also found concrete and a Tyvek suit in Johnson's car.
Victim
Background Collin Small was born in 1979 and grew up in Harlem, developing a friendship with Sheldon Johnson as a child. Small was twice convicted of felony assault, serving a 10-year sentence in Sing Sing before being paroled in October 2018. Small's family described him and Johnson as "long-time friends" and that Small had been supporting Johnson since his release from prison.
Accused
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