Family of a brutally murdered Minneapolis man whose head was severed, frozen and then thawed with the word ‘PERV’ carved on it and left in broad daylight several days after his slaying are still begging for help to find the killer.
Adam Richard Johnson, 36, was found dead in Minneapolis on June 17. Over the next few weeks, his body parts were found gruesomely scattered in four separate locations.
A neighbor who was said to have made the grisly initial discovery near his home told KSTP at the time that the human remains were in two bags, one black and one clear. A woman found a leg cut into several pieces put on display behind a local community center shortly after.
More remains were unearthed about a mile south of the first two discoveries, near West River Parkways and Franklin Avenue on June 22. A fourth set of remains was found in the Mississippi River in Minneapolis on July 4.
Johnson’s death has been ruled a homicide, and Minneapolis police are still trying to find the killer four months later.
KARE11 reported this week that the FBI is assisting the investigation. A spokesperson for the bureau’s Minneapolis office wouldn’t confirm or deny to DailyMail.com that they were doing so but said ‘as a general matter, we routinely offer assistance to our law enforcement partners.’
A woman who would only identify herself to the station as ‘JoJo,’ the mother of one of Johnson’s children, is desperate for answers.
‘He was a human being. Nobody deserves this,’ JoJo told KARE11.
The family says Johnson’s DNA is being tested using samples found from underneath his fingernails. They have cremated the remains returned to them, though not all of his body was recovered.
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Adam Johnson, 36, was identified in June as a victim of a homicide whose remains were found scattered in Minneapolis. His family is still desperate to find the killer
‘JoJo’ told local news outlets Johnson had struggled with mental illness, which often led to problems with the law
Medical examiners were unable to determine a cause of death aside from dismemberment.
JoJo said that Johnson struggled with mental health issues and addiction, but toxicology reports had him sober at his time of death.
‘No, this was not gang; this was not a drug cartel. This was somebody that knew him,’ JoJo told KARE11.
‘It’s possible he was harassing someone at that time – if he needed a place to stay, if he needed money.’
The family believes several people have information relevant to the case that could help solve it but that those with knowledge are too frightened to speak to police, the station reported.
‘We’re here with nothing. We need something. Anything,’ JoJo said.
A neighbor discovered human body parts stuffed into two bags in northeast Minneapolis
A black screen shields evidence from view following the grim discovery
The dismembered human remains that were found in June scattered in two separate locations in Minneapolis were identified as Johnson, a mentally ill father-of-two who had been in and out of jail for various offenses, including for hurling feces at transit workers.
Minneapolis police spokesperson John Elder described the crime scenes as ‘disturbing.’
‘This appeared to be a very focused attack,’ Elder said at the time. ‘This did not appear to be random.’
The police spokesperson said there was no evidence to suggest that the public was in danger.
‘There’s zero reason for us to believe that this is any pattern,’ he said.
Police say Johnson’s death is being investigated as a homicide
Some of Johnson’s body remains remain missing, and police are asking the public to be vigilant and report anything suspicious
Investigators don’t have any indication the body was frozen or otherwise preserved, and they think Johnson’s death was recent. There have been no arrests in the case.
Johnson had been in and out of jail since May 1, and had been arrested on May 22 for allegedly throwing feces at a transit worker
Elder said investigators have gone back through years of cases and contacted neighboring agencies.
Court records indicate that Johnson had been arrested at least three times since May 1, including for allegedly throwing feces at a transit operator.
His most recent run-in with the law took place on June 9, when Johnson was picked up on charges of fleeing police, obstructing and officer and disturbing the peace. He was released from jail the next day.
Johnson’s former girlfriend, who has two children with him, including a four-year-old, told KSTP at the time that he had struggled with mental illness.
‘When he’s doing fantastic and doing great, he is a wonderful person, and when he struggles, he really struggles. … It does and it has ended up in trouble,’ said the woman, who asked to be identified only as JoJo.
Johnson has two young children with his former girlfriend, ‘JoJo’ (pictured together)
She said Johnson had been looking for a permanent place to stay in Minneapolis and she last heard from him on June 12, when he messaged her via Instagram, telling her he would talk to her ‘ASAP.’
JoJo made a direct appeal to the person, or people, responsible for Johnson’s death, asking them to come forward and provide his family with answers.
‘There’s no words to describe how I feel and the heartache that I have now that my children know,’ JoJo told KARE11 in June.
A GoFundMe campaign was launched to help Johnson’s family with his funeral expenses.
DailyMail.com’s request for comment from the Minneapolis police went unanswered.