Crime & Safety

Murder Suspect Pleads Not Guilty in 2011 Homicide

Alphonso Antonio Johnson, 19, pleaded not guilty to the murder of Union City resident Keith Handnot, who was shot and killed near his Contempo home last June.

A San Francisco man charged with the June 2011 murder of Union City resident Keith Hadnot pleaded not guilty in court Friday morning.

After several months of investigation, Alphonso Antonio Johnson, 19, was arrested last month on Jan. 29 after being released from a San Francisco jail on a separate weapons charge.

Johnson, who is being held at Santa Rita County Jail without bail, appeared briefly at the Fremont Hall of Justice with attorney Patrick Hetrick at about 10:15 a.m.

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Hetrick moved forward with the not guilty plea despite not having seen a surveillance video that supposedly captured the fatal shooting last June.

According to Deputy District Attorney Mark Melton, the video is “not quite clear enough to see who’s involved,” but additional evidence has linked Johnson to the crime.

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“There’s a lot of evidence that established identification, not just the video,” Melton said. “It’s a lot of different pieces coming together.”

Hadnot, a 34-year-old father of five, was shot and killed near his home on June 14 in the parking lot of the Contempo Homes community of Union City. He suffered from at least one gunshot wound and was pronounced dead at the scene.

He and his wife, Irlanda Hadnot, both originally from Milpitas, lived in the Contempo neighborhood for four years with their three children and Hadnot’s two stepchildren.

According to a report by The Argus, police are working on determining the motive of the incident. "We know there was a confrontation that happened (before the shooting)," Lt. Ben Horner told The Argus. "It appears to be a random act of violence."

Hadnot’s wife, Irlanda Hadnot, said that she’d never seen or heard of Johnson until his arrest.

“I feel so much anger toward [Johnson],” Irlanda Hadnot said Friday. “He doesn’t look the least bit sorry. He looks cocky.”

“He has no idea how much he tore our lives apart,” she added. “Because of him, I don’t have a husband anymore, my kids don’t have a father.”

Hadnot’s loved ones described him as a caring and cheerful father.

“He was an awesome man,” said Hadnot’s mother, Angela Armon, outside of the Fremont Hall of Justice courtroom Friday morning.

Irlanda Hadnot wants justice for her husband’s death, but said nothing can make up for the loss and anguish she’s experienced.

“Everyday, I relive this nightmare,” she said. “It hasn’t gotten better, and I don’t think it ever will.”

Hadnot’s murder came during a rash of violence in mid-2011 where three homicides occurred in Union City in the span of 30 days. His death was the third and final homicide of 2011.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the Union City Police Department at 510-675-5207.


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