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Brothers Randy, left, and Joshua Johnson
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Convict's brother writes letter admitting he also was in on homicide

Allegheny County Jail

Convict's brother writes letter admitting he also was in on homicide

Sitting in the Allegheny County Jail awaiting trial in a robbery case, his little brother already several years into a long prison sentence for a 2015 homicide, Randy Johnson wanted to clear his conscience.

He penned a letter that found its way last week to Pittsburgh homicide detectives.

"On Nov. 16, 2015 I was on the 800 block of Mt. Pleasant Road when I decided to do a robbery at 1439 Chicago St.," the letter read. "I heard the sound of a gun racking Deron McCray opened the door and we started to wrestle I then shot him once with the assault rifle."

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Johnson, 25, had just confessed to being the second of three assailants who confronted Mr. McCray and were involved with his death inside a Northview Heights apartment, according to police.

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In November 2016, Johnson’s brother, Joshua Johnson, 24, pleaded guilty to one count each of third-degree murder, robbery and conspiracy in the case. He was sentenced to 12½ to 30 years in prison.

The third man remains unidentified. He's listed as John Doe in court paperwork, and Randy Johnson told police that he didn't know the man's name.

Detectives interviewed Randy Johnson on Monday and confirmed that he had written the letter, according to a criminal complaint. He told the detectives that he "wanted to get this incident of[f] his chest as he had been bothered by it for some time," the complaint said.

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Joshua Johnson told police in 2015 that he was not the shooter, and he had no idea one of his accomplices would shoot Mr. McCray during the robbery.

Randy Johnson told police that he had heard that Mr. McCray had a gun, heroin and crack cocaine. The Johnson brothers and the third man — armed with what they told detectives was a " 'neighborhood gun' that was accessible to everyone in the neighborhood" — went to rob Mr. McCray.

After they knocked on Mr. McCray's door, they said they heard the sound of a gun being readied for use. When Mr. McCray opened the door, Randy Johnson told police, the three men barged in and began to wrestle with the victim.

Randy Johnson saw Mr. McCray reach for his waistband where his gun was, the complaint said.

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"Johnson stated he moved his brother out of the way and fired one shot into the victim's chest," according to the complaint.

The three attackers ran. Randy Johnson wrapped the rifle in a sweatshirt and put it in the woods around Northview Heights, the complaint said.

At the time of the shooting, a witness told police that Mr. McCray was inside the house with a legal firearm when he responded to a knock at the door with a loaded gun. The witness heard screaming and a struggle and found Mr. McCray lying on the landing from the kitchen to the basement steps.

Police reviewed video surveillance footage and identified Joshua Johnson as one of the people running from the home during the shooting.

Police said Joshua Johnson told them that one of the other people he was with shot Mr. McCray with a rifle when the victim tried to pull a gun from his waist.

Randy Johnson is scheduled for trial in February on robbery, theft, assault and other charges. He faces a preliminary hearing Dec. 13 in the homicide case.

First Published: December 4, 2019, 3:43 p.m.
Updated: December 4, 2019, 4:25 p.m.

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Brothers Randy, left, and Joshua Johnson  (Allegheny County Jail)
Allegheny County Jail
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