This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A Salt Lake City man has pleaded guilty to first-degree felony murder six months after police said he shot another man while robbing an apartment.
Landon Kavani Johnson, 20, entered the plea Monday, and charges of aggravated robbery, a first-degree felony; aggravated burglary, a first-degree felony; and obstructing justice, a second-degree felony, were dropped as a result.
After a preliminary hearing in early February, a judge ordered Johnson to stand trial for the home invasion that preceded 18-year-old Eric Padilla's death.
On Sept. 17, at about 9 p.m., Johnson knocked on the door of a unit in Sky Harbor Apartments, at 221 N. Sun Arbor Terrace (1850 West), and, wearing a dark bandana covering his face, pointed a silver revolver at the man who opened the door, witnesses testified.
Johnson demanded money and drugs from the man who sold marijuana at his apartment, witnesses said, and after pointing the gun back and forth between the man and a friend visiting the apartment, Johnson noticed Padilla behind the bedroom door and fired a shot.
The bullet struck Padilla in the side of his head, witnesses said, and Padilla was pronounced dead when police arrived.
Johnson is scheduled for sentencing by 3rd District Judge Paul Parker on May 22. He is being held at the Salt Lake County jail in lieu of $1 million cash-only bail.
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