Colo. man accused of killing 16-year-old Walgreens co-worker he had a crush on
06/14/2022 2:34 pm PDT
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (TCD) -- A 28-year-old man stands accused of killing a 16-year-old co-worker at a Walgreens store.
According to a news release from the Colorado Springs Police Department, on Saturday, June 11, at approximately 6:55 p.m., officers responded to the 6800 block of Centennial Boulevard to a report of a deceased person. At the scene, officers found the body of Riley Whitelaw in the Walgreens break room with neck injuries and blood all over the floor, KKTV-TV reports.
According to the affidavit obtained by KKTV, the store manager was the one who found Whitelaw’s body. The manager reportedly told authorities he reviewed surveillance video and witnessed an employee, Joshua Johnson, stacking bins that blocked the surveillance camera’s view. The manager also told authorities someone taped paper over the break room windows, KKTV reports.
Upon further investigation, police identified Johnson as a suspect in the case, and he was reportedly arrested by state troopers 100 miles outside the city on a charge of first-degree murder.
According to KKTV, troopers found Johnson with cuts and bruises on his body, and he told the troopers he had been attacked at the Walgreens. Troopers reportedly checked in with the Colorado Springs Police Department and discovered Johnson was a suspect.
During an interview, Johnson allegedly admitted to being in the break room. He told authorities he fell in Whitelaw’s blood and went home to change his clothes, KKTV reports.
Johnson also allegedly confessed to having crush on Riley, but he said it was over. During another interview, one of the store managers reportedly told police Riley requested a different schedule to avoid working alongside Johnson because he had showed signs of jealousy when Riley’s boyfriend began working at the same Walgreens.
Additionally, approximately a year before her death, Whitelaw allegedly complained to store managers that Johnson made advances toward her and made her feel uncomfortable.
Johnson was arrested, transported back to Colorado Springs, and booked into the El Paso County Jail without bond.
Police say the victim’s exact cause of death will be determined by the coroner, as the investigation remains ongoing.
MORE:
