Michigan mom Justine Johnson, 22, allegedly told investigators that SpongeBob SquarePants spoke to her from the television, saying she would be killed if she didn't kill her daughter.
When 3-year-old Sutton Mosser’s body was found in a trash bag outside of her Michigan home, her mom claimed the beloved children’s character SpongeBob SquarePants ordered her to kill her daughter, according to police.
“It was SpongeBob who was saying … if she didn’t do what she did to her daughter, they would kill her,” a Child Protective Services investigator testified in court last week, according to WNEM. “She said she was afraid for her life and she had lost her mind.”
Justine Johnson, 22, of Oscoda township, is facing charges of felony murder and first-degree child abuse. She has pleaded not guilty to all charges, and is being held without bond, according to court records.
Johnson is accused of fatally stabbing her daughter, who just turned 3 years old two days before her death, on Sept. 16, CNN reported, citing police records.
“She didn’t remember the specifics of what happened at the time of what happened to Sutton, that she was experiencing hallucinations due to heroin withdrawal and not sleeping for approximately two weeks,” the Child Protective Services investigator Ryan Eberline said, according to WNEM.
Little Sutton had been living in her grandmother’s apartment with her mom and two uncles for about month-and-a-half, CNN reported. On Sept. 16, around 6 p.m., Johnson’s teenage brother, Sutton’s younger uncle, woke up and allegedly saw Johnson doing drugs, then asked where Sutton was, according to the outlet, which cited a police report.
Hours later, when Johnson’s other brother Knesley Johnson returned home from work, the teen searched the home for Sutton. Sutton’s mom had been out of the home at the time, according to police reports.
The teen brother then found a foot sticking out of a garbage bag, and alerted Knesley, who called the police, the outlet reported.
Authorities then discovered the body of a girl identified as Sutton with multiple stab wounds. Her body had been wrapped in bedding, and wearing only a pink and white diaper, WNEM reported.
Johnson is scheduled for her next appearance in court on Feb. 28. Her lawyer has not responded to Inside Edition Digital's request for comment.
