VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — A judge on Thursday certified a case against Lamont Johnson to the grand jury before even hearing arguments from his defense.
Johnson, 41, is charged with second-degree murder in connection with the death of Gamboa. She was seen alive at her Virginia Beach home on July 1, 2018.
Johnson confessed to her murder following his arrest last year, according to court documents. He allegedly admitted to investigators that he had pushed Gamboa down a set of stairs and then fell on her. Johnson then said the pair got into a fight and that he strangled her until she died.
Johnson's recorded confession to police was played in court on Thursday. He told detectives a fight started at their home and that the couple's 2-year-old twins were crying as Gamboa foamed at the mouth and coughed repeatedly as Johnson killed her. He said he then smoked cigarettes as he tried to figure out what to do with her body.
Johnson said he put her body in a bag and took it to Chesapeake. Prosecutors showed video of Johnson acting out how he placed the body in a dumpster behind a Pizza Hut on Military Highway.
A detective explained how Johnson said he felt "relieved, a weight was lifted" and how the home would be more peaceful now that Gamboa was dead.
Gamboa's body was never found. Police spent $50,000 unsuccessfully trying to find her body in a landfill.
The other charges against Johnson — four counts of contributing to delinquency abuse of a child — were nolle prossed in court Thursday.
The charges involved the twins he shared with Gamboa. Investigators said Johnson admitted to killing Gamboa when questioned about the charges regarding their twins.
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