Parents of Chiefs fan found frozen to death alongside 2 friends in yard think trio was drugged, ‘dragged’ outside by scientist pal: ‘He concocted something’
The family of one of the three Kansas City Chiefs fans found dead under mysterious circumstances in a friend’s snowy yard has wildly suggested they could have been drugged and left for dead.
Ricky Johnson’s father made the explosive, unfounded allegation even as cops make clear they are not treating the deaths as suspicious and have stressed that it is not yet clear whether drink or drugs were involved.
The friend inside the house, respected HIV data scientist Jordan Willis, has also strenuously denied knowing anything about the plight of his three dying friends, maintaining he was asleep inside with headphones on.
Ricki Johnson Sr. told Fox News Digital that his 38-year-old son was not “irresponsible” and would not have gone outside in the snow without a coat to freeze to death along with his friends, David Harrington, 37, and Clayton McGeeney, 36.
“I believe he drugged them, dragged them outside and waited two days to call police,” Johnson Sr. said of Willis, whose attorney trashed the claim as “ridiculous.”
“He may have done some drugs and stuff in the past, but I do not believe all three of them did drugs and fell over dead in that backyard,” Johnson Sr. said of his son, who had three children of his own.
“I’m not going to say that during a game he didn’t have some drinks. But he wasn’t irresponsible that he was going to go outside and freeze to death,” he claimed of his son, whose coat was left inside the rental house where the pals had watched the game.
“You’re talking about three grown men. If he was out there just freezing like they said, he could’ve kicked out a window to get into the house,” the father continued.
Johnson’s mother, Norma Chester, shared the same theory, while conceding it was just her “thinking” rather than based on specific evidence.
“Seriously, these were responsible men. How do they go in a backyard and freeze to death, all three of them?” she asked the news site.
“Something that comes to my mind, this guy [Willis] wants to brag about how smart he is, he’s a scientist. My thoughts are that he concocted something and gave it to all three men,” she suggested.
“How could this have happened?”
The Kansas City Police Department said foul play is not suspected as detectives await autopsy and toxicology reports.
“This case is 100% NOT being investigated as a homicide,” Capt. Jake Becchina told Fox News Digital.
Willis’ attorney John Picerno also immediately dismissed the wild theory as nothing more than “baseless allegations” from grieving parents struggling to understand the tragedy.
“That’s ridiculous,” Picerno told Fox News Digital of Johnson’s parents’ comments. “He’s a scientist, and somehow he’s to blame? That’s an opinion not based in fact.”
Picerno further stressed that Willis and the victims were close friends.
“There’s no allegation of any animosity between Jordan and his three friends,” Picerno said of the trio, two of whom he’d known since high school. “People want to speculate, [but] it’s not like anyone ever called the police saying, ‘We’re afraid of this Jordan guy.'”
“I understand that people are hurting, but that’s no excuse to throw baseless accusations at Jordan.”
Picerno did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for further comment Wednesday.
Johnson, Harrington and McGeeney were found dead at Willis’ NW 83rd Terrace rental home on Jan. 9, two days after they had gathered to watch the Chiefs take on the Los Angeles Chargers.
The victims’ relatives said that when police officers responded to the house, Willis met them at the door in his boxers with an empty wine glass in hand.
Willis’ attorney told the news outlet that the stemware contained water and had been refilled after being used to drink wine the night before.
In a previous interview with The Post, Picerno said his client was “asleep on the couch” while the victims’ relatives spent two days frantically trying to find them.
Everything to know about the 3 Kansas City Chiefs fans who froze to death outside their friend's home
Three Kansas City Chiefs fans were found frozen to death in the backyard of their friend’s home on Jan. 9, where they had gathered to watch a football game.
The bodies of David Harrington, 37, Ricky Johnson, 38, and Clayton McGeeney, 36, had possibly been there for two days.
Jordan Willis, the man renting the home, insisted he had “no knowledge” of the fate of his friends.
Willis’ lawyer said the man was “asleep on the couch” for two days while his friends’ loved ones frantically tried to contact him.
“This case is 100% NOT being investigated as a homicide,” Kansas City police Capt. Jake Becchina told Fox News Digital.
Here’s more of The Post’s coverage of the tragedy in Kansas City:
- Kansas City Chiefs fan found dead did not use drugs, was ‘murdered,’ longtime girlfriend says
- House where Kansas City Chiefs fans partied has large windows facing yard where 3 froze to death
- 5th Kansas City Chiefs fan at party where 3 friends were later found frozen to death ID’d: report
- Parents of Chiefs fan found frozen to death alongside 2 friends in yard think trio was drugged, ‘dragged’ outside by scientist pal: ‘He concocted something’
- Drugs a possibility in grisly Kansas City Chiefs fans’ freezing deaths outside home, doctor says
“He was asleep. He was asleep on the couch. The last memory he has is of them leaving [out] the front door, he doesn’t know what happened, um, with them, until you know, when the police came Tuesday night to his house,” Picerno said.
The attorney later told Fox News Digital that Willis did not hearing anyone knocking on the door because he was sleeping with noise-canceling headphones and a loud fan.
