warning: Graphic content, readers’ discretion advised. This story contains a recollection of crime and can be triggering to some readers discretion advised
-The case of Nicole johnson.
what begins as a routine traffic stop,takes a horrifying turn when officers detect a strange putried smell coming from the vehicle.
the search that follows uncovers a secret so disturbing,it defies belief, leaving multiple officers visibly shaken,physically ill, and utterly enraged by one of the most vile discoveries ever made.
the following is based on official police records . most of the footage has never been seen before until now….
in Essex ,maryland, just after 11:00 on july 28th, 2021,an officer with the baltimore conty police departement approaches a vehicle for a traffic stop.
the driver ,33 year old nicole michelle johnson,hands over a state ID.sitting beside her in the front seat is a friend who she calls bibi.
the officer heads back to his cruiser to run a registration,but the information doesn’t quite check out.it’s coming back vehicle requested not found or on file.
as the officer returns to his cruiser to issue citations ,nicole and bibi exit the vehicle.nicole walks to the rear and opens the trunk,revealing several large bags tightly packed inside.
the officer has no idea her bizarre comment will soon become a shocking reality.with the tow truck on its way,nicole sits on the sidewalk and calls a friend for a ride.
when backup arrives at the scene,the officer taps his colleague on the arm and quietly shares that something is very wrong.
nicole turns to the officer for help and he carefully begins cutting through the thick layers with a knife.after cuting through multiple layers of trash bags,officers finally uncover a black suitcase….
with both women in custody,the officers struggle to process the horror they just witnessed.
the officer takes the opportunity to walk away and regain his composure,but the emotional aftershock is hard to contain.
more officers begin to arrive and can only guess at what has the other officers in such a sickened state.
after telling the towtruck driver his services will no longer be needed,officers make the difficult decision to get a closer look in order to confirm what lies beneath 5the magot -covered blanket.
what they ‘ve uncovered is just the beginning of a dark and tragic case withmore horrors andburied truths still waiting to be uncovered.
for now , the decision is made to take both women to the police station and are placed in separate rooms.
while nicole seems to understand the reason for her arrest,bibi appears confused and continues to demand answers.
in a separate room,the officer waiting with nicole informs her that he can’t speak with her about the case. left in silence ,she begins talking to herself.
nicole , appearing to wrestle with guilt, will soon have an opportunity to explain the grim discovery.
meanwhile, bibi makes a separate request…
the officer informs his supervisor of bibi’s complaint.but when he returns for details, his met with an interesting response.bibi speaking in foreign language.
bibi is then informed that if she chooses to go to the hospital,she’ll need to wear shackles. bibi choose not to go .
in the other room nicole continues talking to herself,visibly wrestling with her own thought.
the scent of decay clings to nicole,growing so strong that it become unbearable for the others in the station.one officer fills the room with an odor spray,but when that fails to help,he brings in an air scrubber and tries the spray asecond time.
soon after, a decisions is made to transfer the two women to another facility for interviews with detectives.
back at the scene , officers standing watch over the body discuss the tragic case and question the one thing weighing on everyone’s mind.
nicole enters the interrogation room with much to explain. she tells detectives she was in Essex to meet a man for prostitution while bibi waited in the car.
she claimed she’s been aware of the goul smell,but assumed it was a dead rat.
after speaking with detectives,investigators note it was clear that bibi was mentally challenged and had no knowledge of the incident.they contact her mother, and arranged for her to be taken home.
as for nicole, her vague story isn’t enough to satisfy investigators. given the secong horrifying discovery made at the crime scene.
the discovery of a second child came after homicide detectives began sorting through nichole’s belongings,though the signs had been present from the very start.
in a black and yellow plastic bin buriedbeneath the baghs and the suitcase containing the little girl were the aged remains of a small boy.
the child’s body had been wrapped in blankets and placed in multiple layers of trash bags similar to the girl.
their relation to nicole comes as even more of a shock.
7 year old ,joshlyn marie , james johnson and 5 year old larry darnell o’neal were each left in nicole’s care two years ago by her sister dachelle who claimed she was unable to care for them at the time.
investigators also learned dachelle has an active case with the baltimore city department of social services for an eight month old infant who was temporarily taken into their care given the current investigation.
despite portraying herself as the better caregiver,nicole couldn’t even spell the young girl’s name. she also couldn’t recall either child’s birthday.
whatever belief remained that she’d shown love or responsibility would soon be shattered by the grim truths surroundig there deaths.
she lowers herself to the floor as the interview continues.
detective tells nicole he wont discuss his conversation with her family,then steps out to check on her paperwork,leaving her alone to imagine what they may have shared behind her back.
while nicole earlier stated she was living in her car,investigators located a hotel where she’d recently been staying.
in the room, they find two stuffed animals, as wellas two rose bears,one blue and one pink,with ribbons around their necks that read ” always andforever”
with the exception of the stuffed animals,there are no children’s clothing ,belongings,or items to indicate any children had been present.
this,along with their advanced state of decay ,leaves many questions as to how long the children had been in the trunk of the car and what led to theirdeaths.
the detective tells nicole they wont allow her to speak with her mother just yet and remindsher that it’s important to tell her story to investigators first.
text mesages obtained from nicole’s phones revealed multiple convesation with her sister dachelle, who sent nicole money and checked in on the children frequently.
she asks several times to see them eager for them to meet their new sibling.however,dachelle claims nicole blocked her from seeing them.
now for the first time ,nicole begins to explain the reason why,beginning with what happened to her niece ,joshlyn.
investigators interviewed a resident at one of the hotels nicole frequented who reported that nicole ofthen used harsh language and regularly cursed at the children, particularly the girl.
another witness recall hearing nicole abusing joshyln through te thin walls and at times, hearing the child yelling for her to stop.
joshlyn’s death is believed to have occurred around may of 2020,approximately 14 months befor the traffic stop.
despite this ,nicole continued texting dachelle as thoug joshlyn was still alive.in april of 2021, dachelle even thanked nicole,writing;” thank you for taking care of them so well”
nicole admits she continued traveling from hotel to hotel carrying the young girl in the suitcase,eventually storing her in the trunk of the car.
joshlyn’s body arrived at the medical examiner’s office still wrapped in a comforter that contained a cigarette butt.numerous buises were found on her body,but an exact cause of death could not be determined due to the advanced stage of decomposition.
still,investigators ruled her death a homicide, citing evidence of physical abuse and neglect.
with joshyln’s fate uncovered,investigators turn to what happened to her nephew.5 yearold larry, whom nicole refers to by the name ,stink.
larry’s body arrived at the medical examiner’s office still wearing paw patrol pajamas.
hisbody was also covered in bruises, and while superficial wounds were found on his legs, they showed no signs of deep bleeding,however, internal bleeding was noted around both his knee and elbow, suggesting trauma before death
like his sister, larry’s advanced state of decomposition made it impossible to determine an exact cause of death.
allthough she claims not to know exactly what caused his injury, she clearly remembers what happened next …
in june of 2021,nicole sent a video to her friend,showing the black and yellow tote in the back of her car and spoke about getting odor absorber.
according to nicohle the child would’ve already been deceased at this time and would soon join his sister in the trunk of the car.
investigators later discovered that neither child had ever seen a doctor in maryland,had never been enrolled in school, and neither had been reporting missing.
one addittional detail raised furtherconcern.
both children appeared unusually small for their ages.
the girl only weighed 18 pounds.the boy was only 21 pounds.
according to doctors however,it would’ve talen several months of malnourishment for the children to attaing their low weights. the investigation concluded that both minor children lost their lives due to the neglect and abuse inflicted on them by their aunt nicole.
one month after her arrest,nicole’s mother emailed baltimore public officials pleading with them to intervene and protect her remaninig grandchild.
the email additionally criticized social workers and dachelle for not safeguarding the children
multiple news outlets reported that dachelle created a GoFundMe campaign to raise fundsfor ther burial,and rumors later circulated that she may have launched as many as four separate fundraisers, though all have since been deleted.
following her arrest 33 year old nichole michelle johnson was held without bond and later indicted on 14 criminal counts, the charges included two counts each of first degree child abuse resulting in death, first degree child abuse involving severe physical injury.
second degree child abuse , second degree assault,neglect of a minor ,failure to report the death of a minor, and unauthorizd dispoal of a body.
she ultimately pleaded guilty on august 13th,2024 to two counts of first degree child abuse resulting in death.
she was sentenced in february ,2025 to life in prison,with all but 50 years suspended, as well as an additional five years of suprvised probation upon her eventual realease.