Man charged as accomplice in Lincoln double murder pleads not guilty

LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) – A man accused of acting as an accomplice in a shooting that killed two men outside a Lincoln strip club in May has pleaded not guilty.

Darious Fletcher, 32, waived his right to appear in person for his arraignment and instead pleaded not guilty Monday to two counts of accessory after the fact to first-degree murder and felon in possession of a firearm.

Fletcher is accused of taking the gun from the man who allegedly fired it, 32-year-old Christopher Johnson, and driving him away from the scene outside the Office Gentleman’s Club on May 25.

Johnson is accused of fatally shooting 39-year-old Carlos Silva and 40-year-old Terrell Jones.

After the shooting, Johnson handed Fletcher the gun before getting into the passenger side of his vehicle, the affidavit said. Police said Fletcher was seen in the driver’s seat of Johnson’s vehicle with the handgun before the two left the scene.

Investigators tracked Johnson to Omaha, where he was arrested on May 28 after a foot pursuit. Fletcher was arrested in Lincoln the same day without incident.

Johnson was charged with two counts of first-degree murder and was denied bail. In July, prosecutors upgraded his charge from a Class IA felony to a Class I felony, Nebraska’s most serious misdemeanor, making him eligible for the death penalty. He faces an additional charge of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, totaling five felonies.

Johnson’s defense is now asking that the death penalty be removed from the case because it is unconstitutional. He will be back in court on October 24 at 3 p.m

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