Dasia Johnson: Family of NYC domestic abuse victim found dismembered in suitcases blames building security
Trigger warning: The article contains graphic description of crime that may be traumatic to some readers. Discretion is advised.
BROOKLYN, NEW YORK CITY: A body of a domestic violence victim was found hacked into pieces and stuffed in suitcases inside her Brooklyn apartment. The devasted aunt of the victim Dasia Johnson, 22, criticized the building staff for not doing anything to protect her. The security guards at the Linwood Street apartment building did not stop her abusive boyfriend from entering the building after witnesses saw him beating her in the hallways and the police were called numerous times, according to neighbors.
Johnson also had an active restraining order against her boyfriend and he had been previously been arrested for coming to the apartment in March to pick up his belongings, law enforcement sources said. The aunt, who refused to share her name, said, "The building staff didn't do enough. They could have prevented him from coming in there." "They dropped the ball here," the aunt told the police through the phone.
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On September 21, Johnson's aunt asked the building's security guard to conduct a wellness check after her phone had been switched off for a while. When the guard arrived at the door, Johnson's boyfriend and another man were in the unit and refused to let the guards in. The guard left to call the police and in the meantime, the two suspects fled on foot. The aunt said, "They let them just walk out, there is 24-hour security in the building." Police entered the unit and found the woman’s body in two suitcases, her bathtub stained with blood, and a meat cleaver nearby, according to the New York Post.
The aunt recalled that at the time of her death, she was working to get her life together and was on her way. "Dasia was a loving, full-of-life girl. She was working, she wanted to finish school. She wanted to be a teacher,” the aunt said, adding, “She loved her sister, she loved her mother. She was a pretty girl. It’s just sad that her life was unfortunately cut short.”
Johnson was a client of HousingPlus, a non-profit group that provides supportive and stable housing to vulnerable women such as domestic violence victims, people with criminal histories, and women who suffer from mental health issues. The building where Johnson lived provides on-site security. The aunt said Johnson tried to leave the guy "numerous times." “It’s just so sad. She was so skinny. This boy overpowered her… He was leeching off of her. He was using her kindness. Her mother is terminally ill and she needed a friend, and she thought that he was that friend," the heartbroken aunt said. Johnson's boyfriend is currently a person of interest in her murder and the police are searching for him.