Mark Johnson was 51-years-old when he was stabbed on August 25, 2020, around 10:45 p.m. in the 1400 block of Dry Creek Drive in Longmont.
According to Detective Cody Clark of the Longmont Police Department, Johnson was found with multiple stab wounds by a group of bystanders a few feet away from the underground bike path near Hwy. 119 and Hover Street. Clark believes Johnson collapsed while trying to make his way to a nearby hotel to get help.
The bystanders called the Longmont Police Department but were not able to provide officers with any information about the stabbing. Johnson, who was in critical condition, was transferred to a hospital in Denver where he died on August 28, 2020.
Clark said Johnson was a transient — a homeless person passing through town — who frequented the area. In the course of the investigation officers learned, prior to the incident, Johnson had made plans to move to Florida to be with his family. He had planned to leave only days after the stabbing occurred.
Clark said officers talked with employees at nearby stores in the area where Johnson was known to panhandle. “They didn’t know his name, but they said he was polite and they couldn’t imagine why anyone would want to hurt him,” Clark said.
According to Johnson’s son Derrek, Johnson had moved from Florida to Colorado years prior with hopes of gaining employment. “Even then, he did not make enough income to be sustainable,” Derrek said, “so he ended up on the streets. He wanted to change things but being in that environment didn’t help him and there was no one there to help him.”
Johnson’s sister, Leann, said Johnson’s family tried to get him help but he was wary of accepting it. “He was estranged for a couple of years because of some underlying mental health issues,” Leann said. “Like so many others in that predicament, he had to make his own choices.”
Johnson's daughter, Zoe, wants people to understand that Johnson was not only a homeless person on the streets. "He had a family that cared about him and loved him; a family that he was supposed to be coming back to," Zoe said. "He was trying to get better and someone, unfortunately, took him before that was able to happen."
Leann said she and Johnson had a close relationship growing up. Out of the family’s three siblings, Leann described Johnson as being the smartest.
“He was an excellent cook, he was interested in art,” Leann said. “He was such a bright star and had such a kind heart.”Johnson was also very close with his mother and the two of them had regular contact for years leading up to his death.
Derrek said his father aspired to build something for himself.
“His dream was having a plot of land with animals and growing everything he needed to be self-sufficient,” Derrek said.
He described his father as a jokester and an outdoorsman. He recalled Johnson playing pranks and teaching Derrek about camping, plants and sustainability.
“He wasn’t a perfect man but he was a caring man and I loved him,” Derrek said.
Derrek happened to be pit-stopping in Colorado during a road trip from Florida to Oregon on the day of his father’s stabbing. As soon as Derrek heard what happened, he went to the hospital where Johnson was being treated. “I was the last one to see him alive,” Derrek said. “He was totally unconscious and they had him on a ventilator. He looked so beat up.” After a private moment with his father in the hospital room, Derrek spoke with a nurse who told him that Johnson’s heart rate had escalated while Derrek talked to him. “Like he heard me,” Derrek said.
After Johnson passed away, Leann and her mother traveled to Colorado to visit Johnson’s “old stomping grounds,” Leann said. “It was heartbreaking to find his things, his shoes, his cast iron skillet that he loved to cook in.”
On their trip, Leann and her mother met another homeless person with whom Johnson had shared his outdoor living space. Leann said she knew it was irregular for homeless people to share “territories,” so she thought it was beautiful that Johnson had.
“He didn’t have much,” Leann said, “but if you needed something, he would help you.”
Johnson’s unexpected death has affected his family members deeply. They are hopeful for any information about the events surrounding his murder.
“Someone should pay for this,” Leann said.
The case number with the Longmont Police Department is 2020-6721.
Anyone with information about the possible identity of the person who stabbed Johnson is asked to contact Detective Cody Clark at the Longmont Police Department at 303-774-4392 or Northern Colorado Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.
Correction: A typo occurred in the date of death. The confirmed date is August 28, 2020.
