Murder Fantasist Nets Prison Sentence For UWS Neighbor Slaying: DA

UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — The woman who stabbed her Upper West Side neighbor to death in 2018 will spend the next 20 years of her life behind bars, officials said following her sentencing on Thursday.

Following a two-week trial at the beginning of March, Anya Johnston, 29, was found guilty of one count of second-degree murder for the killing of her 70-year-old neighbor, Susan Trott, officials said.

“Anya Johnston callously took the life of her neighbor Susan Trott, a lifelong New Yorker with a kind-hearted, generous spirit,” said District Attorney Alvin Bragg on Thursday.

Bragg confirmed on Thursday that Johnston has been sentenced to 20 years-to-life in state prison.

“To Ms. Trott’s family and loved ones, Johnston robbed them of a friend, mentor and business partner," Bragg said. "Since her loss, they have experienced overwhelming emotional pain, and I hope today’s sentence can offer them a sense of justice, knowing Johnston has been held accountable."

Trott, 70, was killed after her downstairs neighbor, Johnston, then 24, stabbed her in the back and neck with a knife inside her Upper West Side apartment in October 2018. During the trial, it emerged that Johnston has various mental health issues, and notably had fantasized about committing murder.

Prosecutors stated that on the afternoon of Oct. 17, Johnston left her apartment to run errands, including closing her bank account. Upon returning home, she went to Trott's apartment carrying a backpack containing two knives and latex gloves.

After the brutal slaying, Johnston fled the apartment, hid her backpack in a nearby stairwell and then exited the building, according to trial testimony.

Trott’s business partner, unable to reach her for several days, sought police assistance for a wellness check. Four days after the murder, the NYPD conducted a wellness check, leading to the discovery of Trott’s body, authorities said.

On Oct. 22, NYPD officials executed a court-authorized search warrant at Johnston’s apartment. Among the items found were the clothing she wore during the slaying, which was covered in Trott’s DNA.

Johnston was officially arrested on Halloween, police said.