A junior enlisted Army soldier stationed in Hawaii was charged Wednesday with murdering his pregnant wife, months after the private first class was detained following her disappearance.
The murder count and other charges, including several filed in August, were brought against Pfc. Dewayne Arthur Johnson II of Frederick, Maryland, as the investigation continues into the disappearance of his wife, Mischa Johnson, who was six months pregnant when she vanished from her Schofield Barracks home on July 31.
“The general nature of the additional charges are for the murder of Mischa Johnson, intentionally killing her unborn child, obstruction of justice, and the possession of child pornography,” Michelle McCaskill, a spokesperson for the Army Office of Special Trial Council, told Military.com in an emailed statement on Thursday.
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Johnson faces four additional charges with five morel specifications under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, including violations of Article 118, Article 119a, Article 131b and Article 134, according to McCaskill.
In August, he was charged with 14 counts on three charges, including providing false official statements; obstruction of justice; and production and distribution of child pornography.
The junior enlisted soldier is currently in pretrial confinement, McCaskill said, as he’s awaiting a preliminary hearing — a requirement for charges being preferred under Article 32 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
If the charges are referred following the hearing, Johnson could face an arraignment, pre-trial hearing and trial.
“The charges are allegations, and Pfc. Johnson is presumed innocent unless proven guilty,” McCaskill said, adding that the investigation is ongoing.
Johnson has been in pre-trial confinement since Aug. 19, Military.com previously reported, and faced the initial charges but was not charged with murder of his wife or the killing of the unborn child at that time.
He is a cavalry scout with the 25th Infantry Division at Schofield Barracks who was married to 19-year-old Mischa Johnson.
The Army Criminal Investigation Division offered a $10,000 reward for any information relating to her disappearance in August and described her as “5’2″, approximately 170 lbs., six months pregnant, and of Filipino descent.”
No other details about the additional charges or the case were disclosed by McCaskill. Members of Mischa Johnson’s family have previously spoken out about their sorrow to Military.com and on social media.
“She was so excited to be a housewife and to live her dream,” the woman’s older sister, Marianna Tapiz, said on an Instagram livestream in August. “She was so happy.”
The Army Criminal Investigation Division is asking for anyone with information about the case to contact the service’s CID Pacific Field Office at (808) 208-0559 or through cid.army.mil/tips.
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