Woman charged in the murder of 8-year-old Columbus boy found in attic reaches plea agreement
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – A woman indicted in the murder of an 8-year-old boy will spend at least the next 15 years in prison.
Johnna Lowe, charged in the death of 8-year-old Martonio Wilder, who was found in the attic of a home on Olmstead Avenue in the Milo-Grogan neighborhood, was facing charges of murder, felonious assault, endangering children, abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence.
Lowe, along with the boy's mother Lashanda Wilder, were indicted in the murder of Martonio Wilder, which prompted a statewide Amber Alert for two other children. For an earlier report of this story view the video player above.
It was Lashanda Wilder, who called 911 on June 28, 2024 to report Martonio missing, but court records said she became uncooperative with arriving officers and left the scene with her two other children, ages 9 and 3 at the time. Columbus police eventually found the boy's body in a garbage bag inside of another sleeping bag cover and hidden in the attic of the woman’s home.
Recordings of the 911 at around noon that day uncovered that Lashanda Wilder said Martonio ran away and that it has happened before. But police found Martonio body at around 6:30 p.m. that evening. According to the Franklin County Coroner’s Office, Martonio Wilder died from “deep neck compression."
An Amber Alert was issued a few hours later for the other children, but they were soon located at the home of an acquaintance of Lowe. Lashanda Wilder and Lowe turned themselves in on June 29.
The women reportedly came up with a plan to say Martonio ran away then waited to call police. The women also admitted to assaulting the boy other times in the past and choking him by the neck.
On Thursday, Lowe pleaded guilty to murder and gross abuse of a corpse and was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 15 years.
Lowe's mother, Mary Johnson, was also charged in the case, and is facing obstruction of justice charges. According to 911 calls, Johnson made a call to alert police that the kids were at her house five hours after the original call.
Lashanda Wilder's next appearance in court, a status hearing, is scheduled for July 15.