Jail officials investigate release of Raytown murder suspect

A man facing charges in a 2014 Raytown murder case was released from jail last month, and police sought the public’s help Thursday in finding him.

Malcolm D. Johnson, 26, had been in custody in the Jackson County Detention Center, facing charges in the October 2014 shooting death of Monteario Hogan, 22.

But on Feb. 17, Johnson was released from the jail a day after Jackson County prosecutors dismissed the charges and refiled them in a procedural action.

Prosecutors received notice of Johnson’s release on March 3 but did not know why he was released, said Michael Mansur, a spokesman for the prosecutor’s office.

On Thursday, Raytown police seeking to find Johnson distributed his photo to the public.

Johnson was charged a month after the shooting with second-degree murder and armed criminal action. According to court records, witnesses saw Johnson shoot Hogan behind the Family Dollar store at 5242 Blue Ridge Blvd. Hogan died of a gunshot wound to the head.

Asked about Johnson’s release from the jail, Jackson County Department of Corrections officials released a statement.

“We are aware of the release of an inmate from the detention center and have worked with the prosecutors and law enforcement on the issue,” the statement read.

“Charges for that inmate were dropped and a new warrant was issued. Our internal investigation on the matter is ongoing and disciplinary action may follow. We are updating our procedures to add additional checks for the release of certain inmates.”

Police asked anyone with information about Johnson to call the Raytown Police Department at 816-737-6020 or the Tips Hotline at 816-474-8477.

This story was originally published March 10, 2016 at 7:10 PM with the headline "Jail officials investigate release of Raytown murder suspect."