PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — An 18-year-old has been sentenced to 23 1/2 to 47 years behind bars for his role in the killing of a 15-year-old girl in West Philadelphia, and the attempted murder of eight others in four separate shootings.
Malachi Johnson was 15 years old when he shot nine people, killing one — 15-year-old Embaba Mengesteabe. She was inside a car at the gas station with her brother in February of 2021, when both were shot in their heads. Her brother survived.
The victim’s uncle told the judge by translator the teen was a “bright light in the world,” academically gifted with the hope of becoming a doctor.
Prosecutors say the siblings and their mother fled a tumultuous life in Ethiopia more than a decade earlier, only to be placed in Southwest Philadelphia knowing no one, and with very few resources. But the family made a life.
Prosecutors told the judge that the defendant was involved in about a half dozen infractions while in custody, and had bragged about all of the shootings — including the killing — online and in rap videos.
But the defense argued that Johnson lived a more traumatic life than most, enduring physical abuse by his crack-addicted father starting at the age of seven. Johnson’s family was also from Africa, fleeing war-torn Liberia — his father, a kidnapped child who was tortured by soldiers.
A psychologist who wrote a report testified about the teen’s horrific upbringing and said Johnson experienced so many levels of toxic trauma, it would have had a profound impact on him and his behaviors.
Before the final ruling, prosecutors asked for a minimum sentence of 37 to 47 years, as the defense asked for 12 to 24 years.
Along with the sentence, Johnson is ordered to pay $12,000 in restitution and must participate in significant mental health counseling.
The other defendant in the case, Ousmane Fine, is set to be sentenced next month.