Utah man convicted of murder is arrested 2nd time since being paroled

Pat Reavy, KSL.com

PROVO, Utah (KSL.com) — A man who served more than 20 years in the Utah State Prison for murder has been arrested again — this time for allegedly abusing two young girls.

The arrest came less than four years after Solomon Lee Johnson, 44, was originally paroled for his aggravated murder conviction, and less than two years after he was arrested and charged in another felony case.

On Thursday, Johnson was booked into the Utah County Jail for investigation of object rape of a child, two counts of rape of a child and two counts of sexual abuse of a child.

Two girls, both under the age of 11, reported to police that Johnson had inappropriately touched them, according to a police booking affidavit. Detectives, with the help of Adult Probation and Parole, located Johnson on Thursday and questioned him.

“During the interview Solomon admitted that he slept with the victim several times in her bed along with her sister,” the affidavit states. “He stated this was normal in their household.”

Johnson was originally charged with capital murder in 1999 when he was 18 after bursting into a West Valley apartment and shooting 16-year-old Wilber Canales three times at close range, killing him, and injuring an 18-year-old man in a gang-related shooting. With the charge, Johnson became the youngest person in Salt Lake County in 40 years to face a possible death sentence.

In 2000, after being convicted of aggravated murder, he was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole. He was granted parole by the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole in August of 2021.

In 2023, he was arrested again and charged in 4th District Court with aggravated burglary, possession of a weapon by a restricted person and aggravated assault. In that case, he was accused of entering a woman’s home without permission and holding a gun to her head. Johnson was returned to prison on a parole violation as the case progressed in the courts.

The case was dismissed, however, in December of 2023 when the alleged victim stopped cooperating with prosecutors, court records state. Johnson was released on parole again in June of 2024.

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