A Manhattan man will spend 26 years to life in prison after prosecutors said he killed his former girlfriend with a meat cleaver, dismembered her body and remained in her Brooklyn apartment for weeks while her family searched for answers.
Justin Williams, 27, was sentenced Wednesday in Brooklyn Supreme Court for the Aug. 21, 2022, killing of 22-year-old D’Asia Johnson inside her East New York home.
According to prosecutors, Williams, who is from Harlem, stabbed Johnson multiple times in the torso and back before using a meat cleaver to cut up her body. Her remains were then placed in garbage bags and left inside the apartment for nearly a month.
Authorities said Williams attempted to hide the odor of decomposition by using towels and cleaning supplies, while also leaving the apartment windows open as Johnson’s relatives frantically tried to locate her.
During that time, Williams allegedly stayed in Johnson’s apartment and posed as her to call out from work, allowing her paychecks to keep coming in. Prosecutors said he used the money to bring prostitutes to the home.
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He also spent Johnson’s public benefits on food for himself and, in a disturbing detail cited by authorities, brought his young son to the apartment while her remains were still inside.
Investigators said Williams kept trying to cover up Johnson’s death and keep her worried family in the dark. Her remains were ultimately found after building staff became suspicious, carried out a wellness check and contacted police.
Prosecutors said Johnson and Williams had been romantically involved for several years before the killing, and that he had repeatedly abused her during their relationship.
Johnson was a protected party under an order of protection requiring him to stay away from her during the time of the heinous murder.
Williams was convicted of a slew of charges during a June jury trial, including second-degree murder, concealment of a human corpse, fourth-degree grand larceny, fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property, second-degree criminal impersonation, and fifth-degree welfare fraud.
“D’Asia Johnson suffered horrific violence at the hands of this defendant, who then compounded that cruelty with conduct that showed a staggering disregard for her life, her dignity, and the loved ones desperately searching for her,” Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said in a statement.
“He has now been held accountable for that horrific brutality, and I hope D’Asia’s family can find some measure of solace and justice in today’s sentence.”
