Joe Rogan revisited one of the darkest stories ever connected to his podcast Wednesday, recalling how a former gang member presented to listeners as a criminal justice success story was accused of killing and dismembering a man just weeks after sitting across from him.
“We had a guy in the studio that cut a guy’s head off after the podcast,” Rogan said during an episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience” with physician Zach Bush. “He killed a guy and cut his head off.”
The suspect, Sheldon Johnson, appeared on Rogan’s program in February 2024 alongside civil rights attorney Josh Dubin. Johnson portrayed himself as a reformed ex-convict who had abandoned a violent past and dedicated his life to criminal justice advocacy.
Roughly one month later, authorities accused Johnson of fatally shooting 44-year-old Collin Small inside Small’s Bronx apartment, cutting up his body and attempting to conceal the remains.
“He does the podcast and then afterward goes and visits this guy that apparently he had a beef with, kills him, cuts his head off, puts him in a [suitcase], like puts a wig on, and tries to escape in the hallway through the cameras,” Rogan said.
Johnson has pleaded not guilty. The Bronx District Attorney’s Office listed him as recently as May 2026 as facing two counts of first-degree murder and additional charges in the March 5, 2024, killing. His case remained pending at that time. The district attorney’s case calendar states that Johnson allegedly shot Small, dismembered his body and attempted to hide the remains.
Police went to Small’s apartment after the building superintendent requested a wellness check. Neighbors had reportedly heard gunshots and a man pleading, “Please don’t — I have a family,” according to reporting at the time.
Investigators allegedly discovered Small’s torso and one foot inside a large plastic bin. Additional remains, including his head, arms and legs, were reportedly found in a freezer.
Surveillance footage allegedly showed Johnson repeatedly entering and leaving the apartment in different clothes. In one sequence, he carried cleaning supplies. In another, he allegedly wore a blond wig and sunglasses.
Johnson was arrested after returning to the apartment and was initially charged with murder, manslaughter, criminal possession of a weapon and concealment of a human corpse. He reportedly declared, “I’m innocent,” while being escorted from a police station following his arrest, The Guardian reported.
The gruesome accusations stood in stark contrast to the redemption story Johnson had shared with Rogan’s massive audience.
Johnson had spent approximately 25 years behind bars following convictions connected to a series of armed robberies. He acknowledged being a high-ranking member of the Bloods during part of his incarceration but claimed he eventually decided to leave the gang and rebuild his life.
After leaving prison, Johnson worked as a client advocate with Queens Defenders, a public defender organization, and assisted at-risk young people. He appeared with Dubin on episode 2096 of Rogan’s show, released Feb. 1, 2024, to discuss rehabilitation and criminal justice reform. Apple Podcasts described him at the time simply as a “criminal justice reform advocate.”
“I said to myself, ‘I’ve been doing bad for so long. I’m going to try to do something good,’” Johnson told Rogan during that appearance.
Johnson also said he had reached a point in prison when he realized he needed to change.
“I really said, ‘I have to change my life,’” he recalled. “I just can’t do this.”
Dubin went so far as to call Johnson “a miracle” during the podcast, according to contemporaneous reporting.
Just over a month after the episode aired, Johnson was back behind bars—this time accused of one of the most disturbing killings to strike New York City in years. He remains presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
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