Last Friday morning, a man charged with killing a mother and her two young children, in early March, was released to U.S. Marshals. He was then placed in the Mecklenburg County Detention Center in Charlotte, North Carolina.
On March 16, Benjamin Joseph Taylor, 34, was taken into custody in Imperial County, California. He was then charged with three counts of murder and one count of concealment. This was in relation to the deaths of Markayla Johnson and her two young children, Miracle Johnson, 4, and 7- month-old Messiah Johnson.
On March 8, 22-year-old Johnson and her kids, were said to have been missing. They were discovered deceased by authorities in her apartment on March 15. Police say that Taylor and Johnson had been in a relationship.
Documents show that Taylor had previously committed several offenses, including kidnapping, assault, and violating a domestic protective order.
As an investigation started, it was found that Johnson had resided in an apartment with Taylor. It was then learned that no one had spoken with Johnson since about January 20.
After not hearing from her, on March 5, relatives and investigators went to the home in order to try to find Johnson. However, no one ever came to the door.
A maintenance worker told investigators that he attempted to go inside the residence. But, the inside security lock prevented him from doing so. He did open the door, screamed into the residence, but got no answer, so he left.
Then on March 6, investigators found video footage of Taylor leaving the state of North Carolina on a passenger bus.
Over a week after that, on March 15, investigators conducted a search of the residence and found the woman deceased. She had been inside of a plastic storage container where several air fresheners and candles had been used. Several fans had been on, and the AC unit had been set to 62 degrees. It also seemed as though Johnson had cords around her body.
When Taylor’s vehicle was searched the next day, 4-year-old Miracle Johnson and 7 month old Messiah Johnson were discovered inside plastic bags in the trunk of the vehicle.
Records show that one of the children’s wrists had been tied with a cord and several diapers had been wrapped around her face and head.
On Saturday March 16, Taylor was found in a tent, close to the Mexican border. He was taken into custody in the center of the Sonoran Desert and later transferred back to North Carolina.
Taylor has been charged with three counts of first-degree murder and felony conceal/failure to report a death.
