Warrant: Bodies of mother and 2 kids found bound in suspect’s apartment, car

CHARLOTTE — Newly released court documents describe a horrific scene detectives discovered, connecting a suspect to the deaths of a young family in north Charlotte.

Markayla Johnson, 22, and her two children were reported missing in early March. Two weeks later, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department detectives obtained a search warrant for her boyfriend’s apartment where she was reportedly living.

Channel 9 is choosing not to share the graphic details of the warrant.

In the Orchard Trace Lane apartment where Johnson lived with Benjamin Taylor, detectives found Johnson’s body on March 15. Police found numerous air fresheners and candles surrounding her body.

This led investigators to obtain a warrant for Taylor’s car. The next day, they found the bodies of her children, 4-year-old Miracle and 7-month-old Messiah, in the trunk.

The warrant says all the victims’ bodies appeared to be wrapped in cords.

All of the information led to Benjamin Taylor’s arrest. He was found in California and extradited to Mecklenburg County nearly a month after they went missing.

On Monday morning, he appeared in front of a judge in Mecklenburg County for the first time.

Taylor had shackles around his ankles as he waited an hour to hear if he would be granted bond. The judge decided Taylor would not have any bond and would await trial in jail.

Prosecutors cited a “long history of domestic violence” in Taylor’s past as the reason they asked for no bond to be set.

They also suggested Taylor is a flight risk that poses a tremendous danger to the community.

Warrant reveals new timeline

March 3 - Johnson’s family filed a missing persons report with CMPD. The last time they heard from her was Jan. 20. Detectives began investigating and learned she lived with Taylor.

March 5 - Detectives and family members knocked on the door of Taylor’s apartment. No one answered, so they left. Later that day, a maintenance employee was able to open the door. He yelled into the apartment and no one answered, so he left.

March 6 - Taylor is seen on video surveillance fleeing the state on a passenger bus.

March 8 - CMPD sends an alert notifying the public that the three victims were missing.

March 15 - Detectives get a search warrant. That’s when they found Markayla’s body in the apartment.

March 16 - Detectives found the two children’s bodies in the trunk of a car belonging to Taylor.

March 18 - Benjamin Taylor is arrested in California. CMPD detectives charged 35-year-old Benjamin Joseph Taylor with three counts of murder and one count of concealment of death.

April 5 - Taylor is extradited to Mecklenburg County.

April 8 - A judge denied bond for Taylor in his first court appearance for the deaths.

The next court date for Taylor is set for April 26th, but there is a possibility he could be indicted before that happens.

‘We want a definite death penalty’

The family of Markayla, Miracle and Messiah Johnson wore shirts with their loved ones on them Monday. The family of three was laid to rest over the weekend.

“He needs to know that she was loved and so were her kids,” Tabby Holiday said. “She was very much well. He wanted to just take that away from all of us.”

Though the judge ruled Taylor would not receive bond, the victim’s family told Channel 9′s Hannah Goetz they want more.

“We want a definite death penalty,” Holiday said.

“That’s what you’re searching for?” Goetz asked.

“Yes.”

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