More than a year after a Microsoft executive was gunned down in Jacksonville Beach in front of his young daughter, his ex-wife has been charged in connection with his murder, authorities said.
Shanna Gardner is accused of arranging the Feb. 16, 2022 killing of ex-husband Jared Bridegan, prosecutors announced Thursday.
Gardner was arrested in Washington state after a grand jury indicted her on charges of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, solicitation to commit first-degree murder and child abuse, State Attorney Melissa Nelson, who serves Duval, Clay and Nassau counties, told reporters at a Thursday morning news conference.
“We promised at the outset of this investigation that we would not relent until we uncovered the truth of Jared’s murder,” Nelson said. “Shanna Gardner’s indictment acknowledges her central and key role in the cold, calculated and premeditated murder of Jared Bridegan.”
Nelson said Gardner was expected to be extradited to Duval to face the charges. She said her office intends to seek the death penalty in the case.
Bridegan, a 33-year-old father of four, was found lying on a Jacksonville Beach roadway with multiple gunshot wounds.
According to an arrest warrant, Bridegan had dropped off his 9-year-old twins at Gardner’s Jacksonville Beach home, where she lived with her new husband, Mario Fernandez Saldana.
Source : nbcmiami
