Roger Beldo

BABBITT— A 54-year-old man remains in the St. Louis County Jail without bail after he allegedly killed an elderly couple in their own home here. Roger Allen Beldo told law enforcement that he had been staying with Clifford (78) and Christine (79) Johnson in the home they owned located at 38 Fir Circle in Babbitt.
Operating on a tip from the Duluth Police Department, Babbitt law enforcement officers went to the house and found the couple deceased. According to the criminal complaint, Beldo admitted to having killed Clifford Johnson in his garage with a crowbar and beat Christine Johnson to death in her bedroom with a hammer. Police later found those same objects, both covered in blood, on the premises.
Duluth police had come into contact with Beldo sometime after the slaying when he entered Essentia-St. Mary’s in Duluth shortly after 11 p.m. on Oct. 28. Beldo, who may have been confused, had called 911 dispatch several times and reported he was in the jail waiting room, after having done “some really bad things.” Beldo had apparently driven himself to Duluth in the car owned by his victims, which was later found parked in west Duluth.
Beldo was subsequently taken into custody and has been housed in the county jail since the incident. The official criminal complaint was filed Wednesday.
A troubled past
It remains unclear how Beldo came to reside with the Johnsons, although social media posts suggest that the arrangement had soured in recent weeks. The criminal complaint cites the couple’s granddaughter indicating that Beldo had been living at the Johnson’s home for about a month.
On Oct. 12, Beldo posted to Facebook that he had a Section 8 apartment voucher and was looking for a new place to live along with his dog, Willy. “Please I’m stuck in Babbitt, anyone who has an apparment (sic) for rent get ahold of me,” he wrote. Over the next ten days, his pleas for an apartment grew more desperate. “If you are a true friend to Willy and me it’s time to step up and prove it!!!!” he posted on Oct. 21. He posted similarly, again referencing an $830 apartment voucher, on Oct. 23, Oct. 25, and Oct. 26, two days before the Johnsons’ bodies were discovered in their home.
Beldo’s struggles to find housing may have, at least to some extent, been self-imposed. The 54-year-old has a long history of troubled relations with others, including law enforcement. His rap sheet includes dozens of convictions dating back to the mid-1990s, mostly for disorderly conduct, petty assaults, and traffic violations including driving while under the influence. In 2013, he was convicted of felony domestic assault and the theft of a motor vehicle.
While some on Facebook lamented that no one had reached out to assist Beldo in the days before his alleged murderous spree, a long-time acquaintance of Beldo’s, who posted on Facebook, noted there was a reason that his pleas fell on deaf ears. “He’s on here making it look like all of his friends aren’t stepping up to help. Reality is, many or most have, and he screwed them over so badly, or treated them so badly, after helping him, they had no choice but to cut him out,” wrote Ginger Lustila, who claimed to know Beldo well. “I know firsthand, how he turns on a person, after they have helped him all they can… he will threaten, extort, blow your phone up, with endless texts, demanding more,” wrote Lustila. “So, it’s no surprise, it’s a SHOCK, that he killed the very people that helped him. I’m sure they’d had enough. And could do no more for him. He took advantage, he didn’t have to kill them.”
According to the Babbitt Police Department, Beldo is believed to have acted alone and they indicated there is no reason to believe that there is any further threat to anyone in the community.
Community reaction limited
Clifford and Christine Johnson were relatively new to Babbitt, having purchased their new two bedroom home on Fir Circle in 2021, according to county records.
The Babbitt PD did offer condolences. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families during this tragic time,” stated the department in a press release