‘I hate myself for what I did’: Soldier apologizes for killing pregnant wife with machete
HONOLULU (KHNL/Gray News) - A Schofield soldier who confessed to killing his pregnant wife and sentenced to over two decades in prison has apologized for his actions.
In a plea deal, Pfc. Dewayne Johnson II pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the death of 19-year-old Mischa Johnson on July 12, 2024.
CONTENT WARNING: Some may find the details in this story graphic and disturbing.
At a court martial in Wahiawa, Dewayne Johnson detailed the attack, saying he struck Mischa Johnson in the head with a machete after a heated argument.
The machete, which the couple happened to have in their bedroom, got stuck in his wife’s temple. Dewayne Johnson said he eventually freed the weapon and tried to dismember her corpse with it. When his attempts to slice the body were unsuccessful, he bought a chainsaw to dismember the remains.
Dewayne Johnson itted to severing the arms and legs from the head and torso, which he kept intact. He separated the body parts into three separate trash bags and disposed of them in a waste bin, knowing they would be taken to a refuse center and later incinerated.
Dewayne Johnson took to the witness stand this week during the sentencing phase of his court case to offer an apology to Mischa Johnson’s family, his loved ones, as well as his colleagues and the community.
“My wife didn’t deserve that. She wasn’t trash,” he said. “I hate myself for what I did, every day.”
Dewayne Johnson went on to describe Mischa Johnson as kind, adding, “I love Mischa and my child more than myself.”
He added, “They both deserved so much more. I failed as a husband. I failed as a father and I failed as a man ... I’ll forever be sorry.”
After the killing, the prosecution claimed Dewayne Johnson impersonated his wife to distance her family , responding to text messages from them on her phone.
Several of them testified Wednesday, including her mother, grandmother and sister.
For Marianna Tapiz, the death of her sister feels like a “void in her heart that will never be filled again.”
Tapiz added that Mischa Johnson was supposed to be her maid of honor.
s Tapiz-Andrian, Mischa Johnson’s mother, became overwhelmed with emotion on the witness stand, calling her grief “hell” and describing her loss as an “unbearable grief.”
“I struggle every day, night,” Tapiz-Andrian said. “No matter how many people you meet, losing a person isn’t losing a relationship, it’s losing a piece of yourself.”
When the prosecution asked how Tapiz-Andrian felt spending Mother’s Day without her daughter, she responded, “difficult, painful, empty.”
The prosecution also called on an Army CID agent who monitored Dewayne Johnson’s behavior online after the murder.
According to Special Agent Chelsea Banks, Dewayne Johnson messaged 18 different women on a dating app called BLK, and images found on his phone showed him with another woman, kissing and performing sexual acts.
Banks also said digital evidence suggested Dewayne Johnson and the woman were planning to get married, move in together, have children and start a life together.
Dewayne Johnson’s father, Dewayne Johnson Sr., and his three brothers testified by phone from Maryland.
All four were in disbelief when they heard of the crime and said it was out of character for him.
Dewayne Johnson Sr. said he raised his son in a “faith-based family,” adding his son went to a Christian school and was involved in community service.
The soldier’s brothers described him as “ive, generous, and a good role model.”
Dewayne Johnson’s sentencing hearing concluded Thursday with a military judge sentencing him to the maximum of 23 years in prison for the killing of Mischa Johnson.
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