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Johnathan Wright, age 34, of Lindenhurst, was sentenced to 32 ½ to 40 years in prison by a Suffolk County judge on Tuesday, May 7, following his jury conviction for assault and related charges.
Prosecutors said Wright was staying at a Ronkonkoma hotel with two women, one of whom suffered from mental disabilities, on July 21, 2021, when he became enraged after the women fell asleep while giving him a back massage.
Wright choked and punched the victims in their faces and bodies and attempted to push them out of the hotel window, according to investigators. He then forced them to strip naked and tied them together using a belt.
While the women were restrained, Wright held a hot iron to their skin and repeatedly burned them all over their bodies, prosecutors said. Throughout the ordeal, he warned them not to scream and threatened that the burning would get worse if they made noise.
The torture continued off and on for three to four hours before Wright ordered the women to take a shower while he went to sleep on the hotel bed.
According to investigators, Wright forbade the victims from getting medical treatment for their burns or reporting the attack to police for weeks afterward. He "treated" their wounds himself using paper towels.
One of the victims reported the abuse after returning home in August 2021. Following Wright’s arrest, he was recorded on a jailhouse phone call bribing and threatening the women and their families in an effort to stop them from cooperating in the case.
On Thursday, March 28, a Suffolk County jury found Wright guilty of the following crimes:
- Four counts of assault (felony)
- Endangering the welfare of an incompetent or physically disabled person (felony)
- Bribing a witness (felony)
- Seven counts of tampering with a witness (felony and misdemeanor)
- Thirty-three counts of criminal contempt (felony and misdemeanor)
“Justice has been served today, but our support for these victims does not end here,” said Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney. “We will continue to advocate for their rights, provide them with the resources they need and ensure their voices are heard.”
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