LINDENHURST, N.Y. (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) – A man was found guilty of witness tampering and other related charges after repeatedly burning two women with a hot clothing iron at a Long Island hotel room in 2021, Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney announced on Thursday.
Johnathan Wright, 34, of Lindenhurst, was convicted of 46 charges including endangering the welfare of an incompetent or physically disabled person, bribing a witness, tampering with a witness, assault, and 33 counts of criminal contempt.
Wright was staying at a Ronkonkoma hotel for several nights in July 2021 with two women, one of whom suffered from mental disabilities, officials said.
On July 21, 2021, Wright became enraged with the women because they fell asleep while giving him a back massage and began choking and punching them in their faces and bodies then attempted to push the women out of the hotel window.
He then ordered the women to strip naked and proceeded to tie them together with a belt. While the women were tied up, Wright took a clothing iron from the hotel bathroom, plugged it in, and began holding the hot iron to their skin, repeatedly burning them all over their bodies.
Wright warned the women not to scream and threatened that the burning would get worse if they made noise. The assault continued for approximately three to four hours before Wright ordered the women into the shower while he fell asleep on the hotel bed, according to prosecutors.
He also refused to allow the victims to seek medical treatment for their burns or report the assault to police for weeks after the assault, instead treating the victims himself by placing paper towels on their injuries. It wasn't until one of the victims returned to her home in Coram in August 2021, that the victim's mother helped her to report the assault to police.
Wright was arrested on Aug. 17, 2021, for the assault and held in custody on bail as he awaited trial.
From the time of his incarceration in August 2021 through February 2023, prosecutors said Wright used a correctional facility phone line to make repeated phone calls to the victims in violation of court issued orders of protection.
During the recorded phone calls, Wright attempted to bribe one of the women to recant her statement to police and threatened both victims and their families with violence should they continue to cooperate with law enforcement.
Members of the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office, Suffolk County Police Department, and Suffolk County Sherriff's Office monitored these recorded calls made by Wright and learned of his efforts to tamper with the witnesses.
Wright is due back in court for sentencing on April 30, and faces up to 50 years in prison.
"The defendant subjected two women to brutal violence and then tried to hide his crimes by threatening the victims and preventing them from seeking medical attention for their wounds and even from cooperating with law enforcement," said District Attorney Tierney. "I am thankful for and deeply admire the bravery of these women in coming forward to the police, and I commend the work of law enforcement and my prosecutors for ensuring that this defendant is finally held accountable for these horrific crimes."
