On a Sunday evening in Mobile, Alabama, 17-year-old Isaiah Cortez Johnson was fatally shot on March 15, 2026, in what authorities have described as a robbery that escalated to murder. The incident took place at a gas station on Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue. Johnson was a junior at Mattie T. Blount High School, where he was a member of the track and field team.
According to investigators, Johnson was the driver of a stolen 2016 Ford Fusion with five other individuals inside.
Surveillance footage from the convenience store showed the group arriving at the gas station. At one point, a passenger in the front seat entered the store and, upon returning to the vehicle, opened fire. Johnson was struck by the gunfire. Following the shooting, the five passengers fled the scene. Johnson was transported to a hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. The District Attorney's office has stated that Johnson was not armed at the time of the incident.
In the days following the shooting, two suspects were taken into custody after being brought in by their parents. Authorities arrested 20-year-old Jonathan Lee Robinson and a 16-year-old male, both of whom have been charged with felony murder. During a court appearance, Robinson was denied bond, with prosecutors noting he was on probation for a previous robbery charge. The 16-year-old suspect was given a bond of $350,000. Both Robinson and the 16-year-old have pleaded not guilty to the charges against them.
The Mobile County Sheriff's Office has indicated that three other juveniles who were in the car at the time of the shooting have also been identified and will face felony murder charges. The investigation has been aided by surveillance video from the gas station, which reportedly captured the moments leading up to and including the shooting.
