PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Two siblings are challenging the Philadelphia Police Department’s investigation into their brother’s death back in January. Police said he killed himself, but his family is questioning whether foul play was involved and is calling for a more thorough investigation.
Matthew Johnson died on Jan. 28. According to the Northwest Detective Division, which handled the case, the 31-year-old went over to his friend’s house in East Falls. Shortly thereafter, the friend went to the store to grab some cigarettes and Johnson stayed behind. Police said when the friend returned, he found Johnson with a gunshot wound to the head, using the friend’s gun.
Johnson died a few hours later at the hospital. The medical examiner ruled it a suicide.
“Our brother was the type to not stop,” said Sarah Hawkins, Johnson’s older sister. “He was such a protector. And we just can’t let it be the way it is because we know there is more to it than what the police have chalked it up to be.”
Hawkins said Johnson was a Marine veteran who had the backs of the people he loved, and he was a champion for other military vets. She said he was honorably discharged after being diagnosed with a mental health illness.
“He loved anything outdoors. He loved to fish. He loved creatures — bugs, worms, anything,” Mark Johnson fondly remembered of his little brother.
Matthew Johnson Photo credit Courtesy of Johnson family “We know our brother has struggled with depression and we know that there is maybe a possibility that it was suicide, but we are not comfortable with checking the suicide box and just leaving it at that, because that is unfair to him,” added Hawkins.
Just before he died, Matthew Johnson was remodeling his new home and spending time with his emotional support dog Diesel. He had plans that night to go to another friend’s house to watch a football game.
Matthew Johnson and his dog, Diesel Photo credit Courtesy of Johnson family Hawkins said Matthew Johnson sent her a video of his dog around 4:20 p.m., then drove to his friend’s house with an unopened case of beer in the car, intended for that night’s festivities. By 4:45 p.m., police were called to the shooting scene.
The friend did go to the store to get cigarettes — police said surveillance video matches up with his timeline of events. Detectives said they conducted extensive interviews with other people who knew both men, corroborating the friend’s story. However, the siblings said their brother’s home was ransacked around the same time as his death.
“The day that it happened, within an hour, those people went to his house and basically looted a bunch of stuff,” said Mark Johnson, “and there has been stuff like that the entire time and it’s stuff that the police department is dismissing.”
The siblings said Matthew Johnson’s coin collection and other personal belongings went missing. They said some items appeared on Facebook Marketplace shortly after his death.
Matthew Johnson told his siblings there was a debt owed between him and the friend. They said he feared for his life and had been in hiding, though the circumstances remain unclear.
As with all shooting deaths in Philadelphia, the medical examiner was the one to rule the manner and cause of death — in this case, suicide. The examiner often confers with detectives about the circumstances surrounding the death, as in this incident.
As per policy, Philadelphia police said homicide detectives did not respond to investigate because “there was no indication of foul play at the scene, nor did the death appear suspicious.”
A spokesperson for the department added: “The scene itself did not show signs of a struggle, and the surveillance video corroborates the witnesses’ testimony of events. While dying by suicide in another’s home with another’s gun is unusual, all evidence points to a suicide.”
The siblings said no one from the police department reached out to them; they always had to reach out to detectives. They even found out from friends that their brother died.
In response, a police spokesperson said: “Detectives initially were unable to locate Mr. Johnson’s family as [they are] not from PA. Mr. Johnson’s family reached out to police a couple days later. In non-suspicious death cases, the MEO [Medical Examiner’s Office] is the investigative lead, with PPD investigators assisting the MEO. In this particular case, the MEO informed the PPD that they would be completing the notification process. While police do make death notifications, it is not typical practice for detectives to reach out to families of victims who die by suicide, as in many cases, families become aware after contact with medical personnel either at the hospital or at scenes.”
“We don’t feel they have done their due diligence,” Hawkins added. “We want justice for our brother. We strongly feel there was foul play and we can’t find peace.”
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