By Imy Brighty-Potts
An Arizona woman has pleaded guilty to poisoning her US Air Force husband by pouring bleach into his coffee when he caught her trying to kill him with hidden cameras he had set up in their home.
Melody Felicano Johnson, 40, pleaded guilty on Monday to two counts of poisoning food or drink for her terrifying actions where she put trace amounts of bleach into husband Roby Johnson’s coffee maker on July 11 and July 18, 2023. Her husband Roby Johnson said he believed his wife was trying to poison and kill him to collect his death benefits, according to court documents.
Johnson faces up to four years in prison with each charge being a class six felony with a sentence ranging from four months to two years. She will be sentenced on May 10, and prosecutors are recommending she serve two years in prison for her crimes.
READ MORE: CDC pledges $5M scholarships for descendants of victims of disgraceful Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment
While she was initially arrested and charged with attempted first-degree murder, aggravated assault and adding harmful substances to food, drink or medicine, she agreed to a plea deal and is currently being held on a $250,000 (£200,000) bond, according to the Prima County Sheriff’s Office.m The pair have a child together and were pursuing a divorce when she tried to poison her husband, court documents show.
Roby noticed his coffee tasted slightly strange while he was drinking his morning brew in March 2023 while the family was stationed in Germany. He drank the coffee for several weeks before deciding to buy pool testing strips to determine what was wrong with it.
For all the latest on news, politics, sports, and showbiz from the USA, go to The Mirror US
He began by testing the tap water, which came back normal, so he looked at the coffee machine. After conducting the test on his coffee, he discovered the drink contained high levels of chlorine.
She knew that he would prep his coffee pot to be ready at night so that in the morning he just needed to turn it on to make his coffee. For a while he pretended to drink the coffee and waited until the family moved back to Tucson, Arizona to alert authorities because he did not want to report his concerns in Europe, the court documents reveal.
When the family returned to the US in late June, Roby sneakily set up a camera inside their temporary housing near Davis Monthan Air Force Base to observe his wife's behaviour and he captured Melody pouring bleach into his coffee. On July 6, he filed a report with the Tucson Police Department, but police did not pursue his allegation because the video did not clearly show what liquid his wife was pouring into his drink.
In a bid to try and gather evidence that would prove his wife's evil act, he set up a second camera, this time disguised as a fire alarm. Roby went back to the police department with fresh evidence on July 18 and the new footage allegedly showed his wife pouring bleach into the coffee machine before brewing. Johnson was then arrested.
