Today, Burlington County Prosecutor LaChia L. Bradshaw announced that a 21-year-old Pemberton Township man had been sentenced to 28 years for fatally shooting a 17-year-old male victim and wounding a 17-year-old female victim in Browns Mills in October 2021. The sentence is part of a plea agreement between the Prosecutor’s Office and Kai Johnson.
As a result of the plea agreement, Johnson pleaded guilty to First Degree Aggravated Manslaughter and First Degree Attempted Murder in October 2023. The investigation started on October 18, 2021 around 11:30 p.m. when Pemberton Township Police Department officers responded to a shooting in the 100 block of Snow Avenue.
At the scene, officers found Malachi Treherne lying in the doorway of a residence. Treherne was pronounced deceased at the scene. The female victim was transported to Capital Health Regional Medical Center and has recovered from her wounds. Three days after the shootings, Johnson turned himself in to police.
The investigation indicated that Johnson and Treherne were having an argument inside the residence when Johnson produced a gun and shot the victim twice in the head, according to authorities. Then, Johnson allegedly chased the other victim and shot her in the chest when he found her hiding behind a door.
Jay Skelton is an independent crime journalist with a passion for covering the uncovered and the under covered.