With a Stroke of Governor Newsom’s Pen, Bear River Triple Homicide Suspect Will Be Returning to Humboldt County to Face Trial

Mauricio Eduardo Johnson (Mugshot from the Tooele County, Utah Jail)

Mauricio Sachez-Johnson, the suspect in the February 10, 2021 Bear River Rancheria triple homicide, will officially be extradited back to Humboldt County in the coming days, confirmed Humboldt County District Attorney Maggie Fleming.

Sanchez-Johnson’s extradition was dependent on California State Governor Gavin Newsom’s signing of an extradition warrant.

District Attorney Fleming could not confirm when Sanchez-Johnson’s arraignment will take place because, she said, “[T]he defendant’s arrival date in Humboldt County is uncertain.”

Sanchez-Johnson’s defense attorney Andrea Sullivan has attempted in the previous weeks to bargain with District Attorney Fleming offering expedited extradition if Humboldt County dropped special allegations against the 19-year-old. . Sullivan expressed concern in an earlier interview that those special allegations could result in the death penalty. Sullivan told us, if District Attorney Fleming “would like to get Mauricio, drop the special circumstances and make this a non-capital case.”

District Attorney Fleming told us she declined this offer because “the additional crime of fleeing a triple homicide should not benefit the defendant and neither the defendant nor his attorney had any meaningful influence on the ultimate outcome of the extradition process.”

Despite Sullivan’s concerns her client could face the death penalty, District Attorney Fleming said resolutely, “While the California penal code includes the death penalty as a possible sentence for homicide with the special allegation of multiple murders, our Office will not pursue the death penalty and have NEVER INDICATED that we would do so.”

District Attorney Fleming described the crimes Sanchez-Johnson stands accused of as “a very serious case that occurred on Tribal land and destroyed the lives of family and tribal members.” She added, “The individual responsible murdered three people in a home with other children present, then fled the state; we filed charges as soon as possible due to the very serious risk he posed while out of custody.”

Sanchez-Johnson stands accused of using a firearm to kill 16-year-old Shelly Moon and Shelly’s mother, 40-year-old Margaret Moon and her mother’s fiancé 40-year-old Nikki Metcalf on February 10, 2021.

A search warrant affidavit issued by the Utah State Bureau of Investigations describes Sanchez-Johnson arriving at his brother’s the night of the suspected killings in a panic, possessing a firearm, and covered in blood. The affidavit asserts Mauricio allegedly told his brother he had shot someone but later explained he had shot multiple people.

Sanchez-Johnson fled Humboldt County on February 11, 2021, accompanied by Von Eric Keener and his mother Melissa Johnson. The group was arrested in Utah on Interstate 80 after officers deployed spike strips to halt their pursuit. Currently, Sanchez-Johnson has been in a Utah detention center held without an opportunity for bail until he is extradited to Humboldt County.

Earlier:

• Three Now Dead in Loleta Homicide
• 16-Year-Old Is One of Three Dead in Yesterday’s Killings in Loleta
• 18-Year-Old Suspect in Loleta Homicides Taken Into Custody in Utah; Two Others Detained
• Pieces Unfold: More on the Loleta Triple Homicide
• Suspect in Bear River Rancheria Triple Homicide Arraigned in a Utah Courtroom
• Bear River Rancheria Homicide Suspect and Accomplice Appeared Yesterday in a Utah Courtroom
• Bear River Rancheria Triple Homicide Suspect Refuses Extradition Unless Humboldt County District Attorney Drops Special Circumstances
• Utah Search Warrant Provides Tragic Details of Bear River Rancheria Triple Homicide and Suspect’s Subsequent Flight from Justice
• Disruptive Behavior Leads Utah Judge to Delay Bear River Rancheria Triple Homicide Suspect’s Hearing