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Baton Rouge woman tied to steering wheel, stabbed to death on Facebook Live

The Baton Rouge Police Department said 34-year-old Janice David's body was found in an office building's parking lot shortly before 10 p.m. on Monday.

NEW ORLEANS — A man is in custody after a Baton Rouge woman was bound to a vehicle's steering wheel with jumper cables and stabbed to death in an attack that was livestreamed on social media.

Baton Rouge Police found 34-year-old Janice David's naked body in an office building's parking lot late Monday night. Sources tell WBRZ-TV that David's body was found tied to the car's steering wheel and it appeared someone tried to set the vehicle on fire.

Someone who saw video of the attack on a Facebook Live feed notified Facebook, which in turn contacted authorities. The attack was reportedly livestreamed for more than 15 minutes.

Authorities arrested Earl Lee Johnson, 35, on Monday and charged him with first-degree murder. During a news conference Tuesday to announce the arrest, police said Johnson and David had been on a dayslong “drug binge” before he allegedly choked, beat and stabbed her.

BRPD arrest suspect in woman's death

LIVE: Police announce arrest after woman is stabbed to death in Baton Rouge, attack captured in disturbing Facebook Live video. Watch WBRZ at noon for more on the arrest. Follow this story online here: https://www.wbrz.com/news/woman-s-killing-was-livestreamed-on-facebook-before-police-found-body-outside-office-building

Posted by WBRZ Channel 2 on Tuesday, April 19, 2022

“Apparently they were involved in some drug usage together for a couple of days and the end result — as everyone has seen on Facebook Live — is a very gruesome, very evil act,” police spokesperson L’Jean McKneely said.

Autopsy results are pending on David.

Credit: AP
This photo provided by Baton Rouge Police Department shows suspect Earl Lee Johnson, center, who was arrested on a charge of first-degree murder on Tuesday, April 19, 2022, in Baton Rouge, La. A livestreamed fatal stabbing of a woman, Janice David, on social media led police to her body in an office building parking lot in Louisiana's capital. During a news conference Tuesday to announce the arrest, police said Johnson and David had been on a dayslong “drug binge” before he allegedly choked, beat and stabbed her. (Baton Rouge Police Department via AP)

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