A 57-year-old Milwaukee man faces a felony charge in connection to the killing of a woman who was found inside of a garbage cart in December.
Johnny Williams is charged with first-degree intentional homicide as a party to a crime in the killing of Myeisha Moore, 40, of Milwaukee. Moore’s body was found inside a garbage can in an alley on Dec. 2 behind a church and several residences on the 2000 block of North 38th Street.
Prosecutors say Williams said he knew Moore, was with Moore the day she was shot and killed, and wheeled the garbage can to where it was later found with her inside of it. He denied Moore was inside of the garbage cart when he was moving it.
Area residents told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel they found Moore’s death and placement of her body concerning and unnerving.
Complaint details police’s investigation into killing
The criminal complaint details police arrested Williams more than a month after Moore was killed.
The complaint cites police’s review of security footage and notes a roughly five-minute period exists between when Williams, Moore and a third person are seen walking down a street together, and when Williams is seen placing the garbage cart in the alley.
Prosecutors say in that time period Moore was killed and loaded into the garbage. A motive in the murder is not cited in the complaint.
According to the criminal complaint:
Police were called to investigate Moore’s body being found on Dec. 2. Authorities were unable to find any signs of bullets being fired in the vicinity, “suggesting that the (garbage) cart was moved to that location.”
Further, workers on a nearby home showed police photos of the alleyway from the day prior, showing the garbage cart the victim was found in had not been there the afternoon of Dec. 1.
The next day, police detectives went to Moore’s residence, two blocks from where her body was found, and interviewed a man who they would later determine to be Williams. At the time, he said he was Dennis Williams, who is his brother.
Police would later review footage of the neighborhood, which showed Williams, Moore and one other person walking together. About five minutes later, Williams is seen on the footage wheeling the cart that would later be found with Moore’s body inside of it.
The footage later shows Williams returning home and another person pouring gasoline into the garbage can and lighting it on fire. However, they closed the lid, and the fire extinguished quickly.
Police reviewed footage through the time the body was found, and no one approached the garbage cart again, leading them to conclude her body was already inside when Williams placed the garbage cart there.
Detectives arrested Williams on Jan. 6 and interviewed him. He admitted he gave officers a false name earlier and identified himself as being in the footage police reviewed. He said he knew Moore and left the residence with her the day she was killed, in addition to moving the garbage cart she was later found in, but said she wasn’t inside it at the time.
Williams’ next court appearance is on Jan. 16 for a preliminary hearing. He is currently in custody at the Milwaukee County Jail and has a bail of $350,000.
David Clarey is a public safety reporter at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. He can be reached at dclarey@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee man charged in killing of woman found in alley garbage cart