Nathan Johnson was sixteen when he took part in the brutal murder of a man. According to court documents Nathan Johnson, his brothers Anthony Johnson and Brian Johnson Jr along with Michael Gunn would lure the victim over to a home where he was beaten, sexually assaulted, murdered and set on fire. The group thought that the victim had sexually assaulted the Nathan’s mother. This teen killer was sentenced to seventy five year in prison
Nathan Johnson 2023 Information
| C Number: | H51431 |
|---|---|
| Name: | JOHNSON, NATHAN E |
| Race: | WHITE |
| Sex: | MALE |
| Birth Date: | 01/16/1999 |
| Initial Receipt Date: | 08/27/2018 |
| Current Facility: | SANTA ROSA ANNEX |
| Current Custody: | CLOSE |
| Current Release Date: | 04/25/2090 |
Nathan Johnson Other News
Nathan Johnson brutally beat and sodomized a man before setting his corpse on fire when he was 16-years-old. Now, he will spend 75 years in jail for those gruesome actions.
The following was released by the State Attorney’s Office :
Nathan Johnson sat motionless as a 75-year sentence was handed down to him.
On Friday afternoon, Judge Harb sentenced Johnson to 75 years for first-degree murder, 40 years for sexual battery, 15 years for abuse of a dead human body, and five years for tampering with physical evidence, all to run concurrent with each other. Johnson was also labeled as a sexual predator.
Following a jury trial, jurors deliberated nearly three hours before finding Johnson guilty of these charges on Aug. 17, 2017. Because Johnson was 16 when he committed murder, a separate sentencing hearing was held Friday.
Johnson and three other co-defendants – Michael Gunn, Anthony Johnson, and Brian Johnson Jr. – suspected Robert Banks had raped Johnson’s mother, so on Jan. 14, 2016, they lured him over with the intent to beat him up.
“They were lying in wait inside the house,” said Assistant State Attorney Mark Levine. “When confronted about the baseless accusation of the sexual battery of their mother, Banks said he absolutely did not touch her.”
But Johnson and his co-defendants didn’t like that answer. They charged Banks, who tried to run to safety, but they slammed the door in his face and began to beat him up.
Levine told jurors Johnson and his friends would run across the room to kick him as hard as they could in the face and in the head – they shattered his face in the process. A co-defendant then grabbed a pipe and split his head open.
“They destroyed this man,” Levine said.
Close to the last minutes of his life, Johnson grabbed a flashlight and sexually battered Banks with it while taunting him. He then helped his brother tighten an electrical cord around Banks’ neck.
“The defendant jumps on his (Banks’) back and was holding him down while kicking and punching, tightening the electrical cord, choking the life out of him,” Levine said. “Banks’ life was over, but the story and nightmare wasn’t.”
Johnson memorialized the murder by taking multiple cell phone photos of Banks’ beaten and battered body. He sent those photos to his mother.
After killing Banks and taking photos of him, Johnson called his father – Brian Johnson Sr. – to tell him what they’d accomplished. His father came over to help them dispose of the body to keep them from getting caught.
They wrapped Banks with trash bags and a blanket, loaded him into a jeep, and drove to Sumter County. Banks’ body was dumped into the woods and set on fire.
But Levine said their trip to Sumter County didn’t end there. Johnson and his co-defendants went to Circle K to buy drinks, and they were caught on the surveillance video.
“This man and his cohorts didn’t have a care in the world,” Levine told jurors. “They were laughing and smiling.”
When they returned to Polk County, Johnson and his co-defendants discarded the pipe and burned the mattress Banks’ body was laid on and clothes he was wearing.
The next day, Banks’ body was spotted by a man driving his Jeep on trails in the woods. Law enforcement was called, and an investigation began, leading back to Johnson.
At first, Levine said, Johnson kept denying his involvement. But he eventually confessed to luring Banks, beating him and taking the “trophy” photos of the aftermath.
Levine said Johnson’s actions proved he intended to kill Banks. Once the plan was in motion, Johnson made conscious decisions and choices that led to one conclusion: Banks would be beaten until he was dead.
But not only was Banks beaten, he was sexually battered.
“The defendant was the one who took joy and twisted excitement in sexually battering him, and he memorialized it in taking a picture of it,” Levine said in his closing arguments. “He (Johnson) said and did things that make his intent explicitly clear.”
“These are conscious choices this man made to brutally beat, sexually batter, burn and discard another human being. He deserves to be held accountable for his actions,” Levine said.
Nathan Johnson More News
Nathan Johnson, who was two days shy of his 17th birthday the day Robert Banks was brutally beaten and sodomized in January 2016, has been sentenced to 75 years in prison for Banks’ murder.
In his trial a year ago, prosecutors presented evidence of photos on Johnson’s cellphone showing Banks on a bloody mattress after he’d been beaten and sodomized with a long-handle flashlight.
A jury of eight men and four women deliberated about three hours before convicting Johnson, then 18, of first-degree murder, sexual battery, tampering with physical evidence and abuse of a dead human body.
In a written order released Friday, Circuit Judge Jalal Harb ruled that he took Johnson’s age and maturity at the time of the murder into consideration when determining his sentence. Sentencing was delayed as the courts grappled with changes to juvenile sentencing rules. He noted that Johnson, along with his two older brothers and a close friend, who also was older, all were acting on the accusation that Banks had raped the Johnsons’ mother when they lured Banks to their house and beat him.
“It is plausible that the presence and participation of his older brothers amounted to an encouraging factor,” Harb wrote in his 10-page order.
When assessing any effect Johnson’s maturity may have had on his decisions the day Banks died, Harb stated: “The defendant, his brothers and their friend decided to take action against the victim instead of reporting the accusation of rape to law enforcement. The life of Mr. Banks did not matter to them.”
Nathan Johnson, now 19, faced a minimum 40-year term and maximum life sentence for first-degree murder.
In addition to the 75-year term for the murder conviction, Harb imposed a 40-year sentence for sexual battery, along with 15 years for abuse of a dead human body and five years for tampering with physical evidence, all to run concurrently.
Nathan Johnson is the second of the three brothers to be sentenced for Banks’ murder. His older brother, Anthony, 21, was convicted of first-degree murder earlier this month and sentenced to life imprisonment. Another brother, Brian, 25, was found guilty of second-degree murder in April and faces up to life imprisonment when he’s sentenced Sept. 6.
Gunn, 27, also was sentenced to life imprisonment after a jury convicted him in January of first-degree murder and related charges.
The four defendants had lured Banks, 31, to the Johnsons’ Lakeland home on the guise of a drug deal, according to court testimony. Banks denied their allegations of rape, even as they continued to assault him.
Nathan Johnson was accused of sodomizing Banks with the flashlight.
After Banks died, the brothers called their father, Brian Johnson Sr., who accompanied them to Sumter County to dispose of Banks’ body in a wooded area. Before leaving, they doused the body in gasoline and set it on fire, according to court testimony.
In an agreement with prosecutors, Johnson Sr., 49, pleaded guilty in May 2017 to accessory after the fact in a capital felony and abuse of a dead human body. He was facing up to 30 years in prison, but received an eight-year sentence in exchange for his plea. As part of his plea deal, Johnson had agreed to testify for the state against his sons, if needed, but prosecutors never called him to the witness stand.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nathan Johnson Now
Nathan Johnson is currently incarcerated at the Santa Rosa Annex
Nathan Johnson Release Date
Nathan Johnson is not scheduled for release until 2090