VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — A judge has ruled the confession Lamont Johnson made to the murder of Bellamy Gamboa can be allowed as evidence at Johnson's trial.
"The judge has made the right decision and I'm glad he did. I guess we will now go to trial," explained Gamboa’s father, Emmanuel Gamboa.
Johnson's lawyer made a motion to suppress the confession in July. At that time, the judge said he would take time to listen to 19 hours of evidence before deciding whether some or all of it the evidence should be suppressed. The confession was at the center of the evidence.
On Wednesday, the judge denied the motion to suppress the confession, meaning it can be used during the upcoming trial.
Virginia Beach police said Johnson killed Gamboa in 2018. Johnson was Gamboa's ex-boyfriend at the time of her death and the father of two of her children.
"I really really miss her. I wish she was here with us," said Gamboa's father.
Investigators said Johnson, who faces a charge of Second-degree Murder, made his confession after his arrest. They said he admitted to investigators that he pushed Gamboa down a set of stairs, then fell on top of her. He said after they fell, they got into a fight, and he strangled her. He told officers her body was put into a bag and left in a dumpster in Chesapeake.
Gamboa's body never was found.
Emmanuel Gamboa said, "It's been a struggle and it’s been a long three years for us. It's very stressful, not only to be but to the entire family."
When Johnson's lawyer made the motion to suppress, he told the judge that at some point when Johnson talked to investigators, Johnson told them he was done and had nothing else to tell them, but they continued the conversation. He said it was after Johnson indicated he was done that he confessed.
The lawyer argued that investigators should have stopped prior to the confession, and for that reason, it should be suppressed. They also said there was a coercive environment from law enforcement that led to the confession.
The prosecution said that police were within the law and that the confession should remain in evidence.
Johnson's trial is scheduled to begin on January 24, 2022.
"I only want justice for Bellamy. That's all I'm here for. I will do my very best to obtain that justice," said Emmanuel Gamboa.