The accomplice of the man convicted of fatally shooting 23-year-old Chandler Sweaney to death during a robbery in early 2021 was sentenced to 15 years in prison for his role in the crime.
Timothy Johnson, 34, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, unlawful possession of a firearm and first-degree assault.
Greene County prosecutors say Johnson went with Paul Morales to Sweaney’s residence in the 2800 block of West Chestnut Expressway to rob Sweaney’s roommate the night of Feb. 1, 2021.
Sweaney was shot while he was sitting on the couch in his living room and watching television.
Throughout the investigation into Sweaney's death and Morales’ trial, Sweaney was described as an innocent victim who unknowingly rented a room to a drug dealer — Ricky Rose.
Springfield police believe Morales was the person who shot Sweaney. Johnson was charged and convicted because of Missouri’s felony murder rule that a person is culpable murder if they commit a felony or attempt to commit a felony and another person is killed as a result.
Morales, 31, was convicted by a Greene County jury in late 2023 of second-degree murder, armed criminal action and other weapons charges for Sweaney’s death on Feb. 1, 2021. Greene County Circuit Judge Jerry Harmison sentenced Morales in January 2024 to 55 years in prison with credit for time served.
Johnson, who pleaded guilty in 2023, testified for the prosecution at Morales’ trial. At his sentencing hearing March 5 in Judge Kaiti Greenwade's courtroom, Johnson's defense attorney Stuart Huffman asked that media not publish images of Johnson's face because he received some threats for his cooperation in prosecuting and convicting Morales. With no objection from the prosecutor, Greenwade granted Huffman's request.
Police say both Morales and Johnson were known members of the criminal street gang Gangster Disciples, and both have criminal histories.
According to court documents and information presented in court, Sweaney owned the home where he was killed and used social media networks to find roommates. Rose was renting a room from Sweaney, but the two did not know each other prior to becoming roommates. Investigators don’t believe Sweaney was involved in any illegal activity.
Rose — who was shot in the leg during the robbery by Johnson — pleaded guilty in May 2023 to second-degree murder for Sweaney’s death. The plea agreement provides for a 10 year prison sentence with probation denied. The terms of that plea agreement also required Rose to testify truthfully in Morales’ and Johnson’s cases.
Greenwade sentenced Johnson to 15 years in prison for the second-degree murder charge, 10 years for the unlawful possession of a weapon charge and 15 years for the first-degree assault charge. Those sentences will run concurrently. Because the murder and assault charges are dangerous felonies, he must serve at least 85% of the sentence before he is eligible for parole.
