Who is Sheldon Johnson, the criminal justice activist charged in the Bronx torso case?
THE BRONX - Sheldon Johnson, the 48-year-old man charged in the murder of Collin Small after the NYPD said a human torso and foot were discovered Tuesday night inside a Bronx building, is a criminal justice activist and ex-con.
Who is Sheldon Johnson?
Johnson recently appeared on Joe Rogan’s podcast talking about how he had turned his life around after a life of crime. Last year, Johnson started working with troubled youth at the Queens public defender's office. The shirt he wore said "Queens Defenders".
WATCH: Sentenced to 50 Years Sheldon Johnson Decided to Turn His Life Around
"I got into school, I got my GED. From there, I got involved in correspondence courses," Johnson said. "I started interacting with guys who were teaching Aggression Replacement Training (ART), and I started to begin to understand how these concepts worked. What's positive visualization is deep breathing, how to remove yourself, conflict resolution."
Johnson served 25 years behind bars. He was a drug dealer and gang member.
Timeline: What happened in the Bronx?
The NYPD responded to a wellness check on Tuesday around 8:30 p.m. at a building on Summit Avenue, near W. 162nd St. in Highbridge.
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NYPD arrest criminal justice activist, ex-con in connection to torso found in the Bronx
Criminal Justice activist and ex-con, Sheldon Johnson, 48, has been arrested after a human torso and foot were discovered inside a Bronx building Tuesday night, according to the NYPD.
According to police, officers found the torso at the location. Johnson is accused of shooting the 44-year-old Small in the head and then dismembering his body.
A law enforcement source told FOX 5 NY’s Linda Schmidt that investigators found the torso and two feet in a plastic storage bin in the victim’s apartment. They also found the victim’s head, legs and one arm in a freezer of the suspect’s Harlem apartment.
Sources tell the New York Post that the victim may have had a beef with Johnson while both were doing time at Sing Sing prison in Westchester County.
The superintendent of the victim’s apartment building said a neighbor heard gunshots.
'Something was suspicious’
"The tenant of the apartment came in, and he never came out," the superintendent said. "So I called police because something was suspicious."
The pictures the superintendent provided FOX 5 NY with show Johnson allegedly carrying bags in and out of the apartment building the day of the murder, and changing his clothes several times, as well as wearing disguises.
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Torso found in Bronx apartment: NYC police
A human torso was discovered inside a Bronx building Tuesday night, according to the NYPD.
The medical examiner is working to figure out the cause of the death.
Along with murder, Johnson is also charged with concealment of a human corpse. He was arraigned Thursday and ordered to be held without bail.
FOX 5 NY contacted the Queens Public Defender’s office about Johnson working for them, but they had no comment.