Tennessee woman accused in shooting tells deputies that she thought salesman was a hit man

CORDOVA, Tenn. (AP) — A Tennessee woman accused of shooting a salesman at her front door told deputies that she mistook him for a hit man, authorities said.

Monica Johnson-Markwork, 51, of Cordova, a Memphis suburb, was charged with felony aggravated assault in the shooting, news outlets reported, citing a statement from the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office. The door-to-door salesman for Aptive Pest Control was hospitalized in critical but stable condition, the office said.

Johnson told deputies that she had been in contact with her incarcerated son and believed that a gang put a hit out on both him and her, the sheriff’s office said. She told deputies she saw an unknown person on a security camera Wednesday that appeared to be running toward her front door.

Johnson told deputies that she ran upstairs to hide, but further investigation found that she shot through the door before going upstairs, the sheriff’s office said.

She did not admit to shooting a gun, but deputies said they found the weapon used in the shooting in the crawl space in the attic where she was hiding.

A phone number listed for Johnson rang unanswered. The public defender’s office declined to answer a question about whether she had a lawyer who could speak on her behalf, and a court clerk said she hadn’t been assigned one yet.

She was released from jail on a $4,000 bond and has a court date set for Oct. 13.