Man charged with murder, armed criminal action in September campground assault

A man has been charged with murder and armed criminal action after a man died from an assault at a Lake of the Ozark’s campground.

On September 22, police responded to an assault at the campgrounds below the dam. Officers said when they arrived, they saw an unconscious man, not breathing, tied to the rear of a Jeep.

According to the probable cause statement, it appeared the victim, later identified as Mark Johnson, had been dragged behind the Jeep. Johnson also appeared to have stab wounds on his head and arm and some of his fingers were severely severed.

John Powell admitted to police that he had tied Johnson to the Jeep because he was allegedly threatening his wife.

Officers said the campground where Powell and his wife were staying was full of blood and blood spatter. A trail of blood was found leading from the campsite to the Jeep’s final location. Two bloody knives and a bloody hammer were recovered from the scene.

Johnson was taken to University Hospital where he died seven days later. The autopsy concluded he died of “blunt force injuries to the head.”

On October 18, Powell gave a full confession to the murder. He said he became angry with Johnson earlier in the evening when Johnson told him he had 1400 kills in the military and that he was a member of the CIA.

Powell admitted that “at first I hit him a little too many times.”

According to the probable cause statement, Powell was currently on parole for domestic assault.

Powell is currently in the Jefferson City Correctional Center.

For more on the initial assault, click here.