Mom of slain man believes he was killed over custody battle

GRESHAM, Ore. – Ryan Johnson's family describe him as a loving father who lost his life in a fight for his son.

Ryan Johnson, 22, was gunned down outside an Aloha grocery store Thursday afternoon. Police say the gunman was 52-year-old Jeffrey Brian Johnson.

While both men have the same last name, they are not related. But Ryan Johnson was the former boyfriend of Jeffrey Johnson's daughter.

While investigators haven't confirmed a motive, court documents show a tumultuous custody battle between Jeffrey Johnson's daughter, Megan, and Ryan Johnson over their three-year-old son.

Ryan Johnson's mother, Amy, told KATU News that Jeffrey Johnson had threatened her son over his desire to see his 3-year-old son. She said he was even offered money to walk away.

Ryan's family cried and hugged each other Friday night while remembering him.

"He went to the gym, he played basketball, and he went to school," his mother said. "He had all these amazing friends and everywhere Ryan would go, into someone's home, he automatically became their family."

She said his family was his priority, especially his 3-year-old son.

"All Ryan wanted was to be a father," Amy Johnson said.

But she said that's also what ended his life.

"(The custody battle was) the only thing it was over. My son died over four hours, because someone didn't want him to visit his son for four hours a week."

She said the child's mother, Megan, never wanted Ryan around.

"She would do anything and everything to stop that visit," she said.

The shooting happened just two weeks after Ryan made a claim on Facebook that Jeffrey Johnson offered him money to give up his parental rights.

"They starting offering him 50,000 dollars to stop visitation and to walk away," Amy Johnson said.

Ryan said he refused the money.

"I'm the oldest, but a lot of times I looked up to him," said Ryan's brother Ben Reed. "He was very responsible with everything."

Ben said there were those custody issues but he never thought it would go as far as it did.

"It doesn't make any sense to me. I haven't been able to make any sense of it. It's hard."

Ryan Johnson's family said he was a student at Portland Community College and wanted to be a firefighter.

Jeffrey Johnson appeared in court Friday afternoon for the murder of Ryan Johnson. Court documents say Jeffrey and his daughter were concerned about what they say was Ryan's "irrational and emotionally abusive behavior."

Last March, Ryan Johnson pleaded guilty to harassing Megan with phone calls and text messages.

Court records show Ryan Johnson was fighting for more custody, accusing Megan of "depriving their 3-year-old son of seeing his father."

Jeffrey Johnson pleaded not guilty.