On February 3, 2023, 16-year-old Rodrigo Lamar Johnson was found deceased from a gunshot wound in his family's home in Cincinnati, Ohio. The incident, which also claimed the lives of his mother, 38-year-old Darlene Flores, and his 19-year-old brother, Eric Johnson Jr., was determined by authorities to be a double homicide followed by a suicide. Investigations revealed that Eric Jr. fatally shot his mother and younger brother before taking his own life.
This tragedy occurred just months after another devastating event for the family. In August 2022, Rodrigo's father, Eric Johnson Sr., was involved in a murder-suicide that resulted in the death of Rodrigo's 6-year-old sister, Iyla Johnson. Friends of Eric Jr. noted that he struggled profoundly with the loss of his sister, which may have contributed to the subsequent family tragedy.
Further investigations uncovered that Eric Jr. was responsible for the 2020 shooting death of 18-year-old Serreno Foster. This information came to light after the February 2023 incident, adding another layer of complexity to the family's history.
Rodrigo was remembered as a vibrant young man with aspirations of following in his father's footsteps by attending barber college and eventually owning a barbershop. He was a student-athlete, playing football and baseball, and had dreams of moving to Utah, drawn by its mountains and solitude. His untimely death, along with the loss of his immediate family members, left a profound impact on the community.
