Danielle Cherakiyah Johnson, a 34-year-old astrology influencer and recording artist known by the moniker “Ayoka,” has been thrust into the spotlight for a tragic sequence of events. Authorities allege that she fatally stabbed her partner at their Los Angeles apartment, followed by an unthinkable act: she hurled her two children from a moving SUV onto the highway, resulting in the heartbreaking death of her infant daughter.
Johnson’s online presence provides some chilling clues. In the days leading up to the violence, she expressed deep concern about the impending solar eclipse. She described it as the “epitome of spiritual warfare” in a post on the platform X (formerly known as Twitter). Her words were ominous, urging followers to prepare for a world in flux.
The mother who stabbed her partner to death and pushed her kids out of a moving car on a busy L.A. Freeway before crashing her own car was an astrology influencer who was worried about the solar eclipse. https://t.co/BcOCP8TG0f pic.twitter.com/oJjtUN82UV
— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) April 10, 2024
Detectives have scrutinized Johnson’s online posts, yet the police refrain from attributing the solar eclipse as a precipitating or contributing factor to the gruesome slayings. According to Lieutenant Guy Golan, the reason for her actions remains an enigma, shrouded in darkness.
The eclipse, despite its ominous timing, remains an elusive piece of the puzzle, leaving investigators grappling with the haunting question: Why did she commit such unspeakable acts?
“We’ve taken all the facts we can, but without being able to interview her and without having something more tangible than a post on X, I don’t know how much weight you can give to somebody (saying) there’s an apocalypse and attribute it to one of the most horrific murders we’ve had in LA,” Golan, who is head of the homicide unit investigating the case, said.
According to authorities, Johnson and her partner, 29-year-old Jaelen Allen Chaney, engaged in a heated argument around 3:40 a.m. on Monday at their apartment in Woodland Hills, approximately 25 miles (42 km) northwest of downtown Los Angeles. During this altercation, Johnson allegedly stabbed Chaney.
Johnson continued her harrowing journey along Interstate 405 in Culver City. In a chilling act, she hurled her two daughters from the moving SUV around 4:30 a.m. The consequences were devastating: the infant daughter was pronounced dead on the road, while her older sister, who had witnessed the stabbing, survived with moderate injuries.
Heading southwest to Redondo Beach a mere half-hour later, she was behind the wheel, hurtling at speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour (160 kph), until her vehicle collided violently with a tree.
The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) is now probing whether this solo crash was an apparent suicide. The Los Angeles Times initially brought to light Johnson’s social media activities, linking them to the tragic killings that unfolded earlier.
“Get your protection on and your heart in the right place,” she posted April 4 to more than 105,000 followers on X. “The world is very obviously changing right now and if you ever needed to pick a side, the time to do right in your life is now. Stay strong you got this.”
On April 5, she exclaimed loudly, “Wake up! Wake up! The apocalypse is upon us. Everyone who has ears, heed this message. Your time to decide your beliefs is now.”
On her social media, she expressed a blend of disturbing content, including antisemitic screeds, conspiracy theories about vaccines, and ominous warnings about the end of the world.
Alongside these, she also shared astrological predictions and positive affirmations. On April 5, she repeated the word “LOVE” numerous times. Her personal website offers an array of services, such as “zodiac healing work,” “alcohol balancing system,” and an “aura cleanse.”
Johnson has been a prominent figure on the internet for several years. In 2016, The Fader, a music magazine, conducted an interview with her, focusing on her role as an astrology personality.
“She was very standoffish,” said Norman Linder, a Woodland Hills neighbour. He only saw Johnson and her daughters a few times before in the apartment complex.
Another neighbour, Anita Mazer, told the AP that when she saw the family, “I just said ‘hello.’ The baby was really cute,” she said Wednesday. “It’s horrible.”
Golan stated that there were no prior police calls to the couple’s apartment before the fatal incident on Monday. Neighbors dialed 911 after noticing the door was open. Johnson did not have a felony criminal record in California, and there were no signs of reported domestic violence.
Detectives did not immediately connect the Woodland Hills slaying to the daughters, according to Golan. He was in the San Fernando Valley neighborhood when he began receiving push alerts from news organizations on his cellphone regarding the infant’s death on the roadway in Culver City.
Investigators then recognized a potential link between the two missing children from the family’s apartment and the tragedy on the interstate.
“I was like ‘Oh, there’s two young girls who were stranded on the 405 Freeway.’ That is such a random and terrible thing to hear about. And we knew there were two young children,” Golan continued. “We were setting up an Amber Alert.”
Detectives found candles and cards in the apartment, but Lieutenant Guy Golan was uncertain if they were tarot cards. According to him, they didn’t resemble the standard deck of cards used for playing poker.
“They didn’t look like your standard deck of cards that you would play poker with,” he said.
“How many people wrote about it,” he said, “and didn’t go out and murder somebody?”
The total solar eclipse cast its shadow across North America, creating a mesmerizing spectacle that captivated millions. The path of totality, approximately 115 miles (185 kilometers) wide, extended from Mazatlan, Mexico, to Newfoundland, Canada.
In this swath, communities experienced daytime darkness as the moon obscured the sun. State parks, city rooftops, and small towns were plunged into an eerie twilight, while Southern California witnessed only a partial eclipse that reached its peak at 11:12 am.
Revelers marveled at the celestial phenomenon, but it also sparked a range of emotions and beliefs. Some feared an impending apocalypse, while others connected the event to spiritual and religious significance.
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