Florida authorities are expected to announce Wednesday an arrest in the mysterious murder of Microsoft executive Jared Bridegan in front of his then-2-year-old daughter nearly one year ago.
Jacksonville Beach Police Department Chief Gene Paul Smith and Melissa Nelson, State Attorney for the Fourth Judicial District, will speak at a press conference at the police department at noon.
The slain software developer’s widow, Kirsten, and their daughters Bexley, 3, and London, 1 — along with his brother, Adam Bridegan — are expected to be present for the announcement.
Bridegan, 33, was shot to death Feb. 16 after dropping off his twins with his ex-wife Shanna Gardner-Fernandez at her house.
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A family portrait of Jared and Kirsten Bridegan. (Infinite Focus Photography/Madeline Insignares)
On his way home to St. Augustine, he encountered a tire in the road and was gunned down when he stepped out to move it. Bexley was in her car seat and witnessed the murder.
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Bridegan had been locked in near constant litigation with his ex-wife over finances and custody of their now 10-year-old twins since their 2016 divorce – a courtroom showdown that only ended with his death.
Jared Bridegan with his four children on a pumpkin picking excursion. (Courtesy: Kirsten Bridegan)
Gardner-Fernandez and her second husband, Mario Fernandez, remain suspects in the killing, a law enforcement source told Fox News Digital.
Shortly after Bridegan and his ex-wife split up, she asked a tattoo parlor staffer if he knew anyone who could “shut him up.”
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Amid mounting public scrutiny over her ex’s murder, Gardner-Fernandez moved 2,800 miles to the Pacific Northwest late last year, Fox News Digital exclusively reported Tuesday.
Shanna Gardner-Fernandez and her husband Mario Fernandez pose in a car. Her ex-husband, Jared Bridegan, was fatally shot Feb. 16, 2022. (Facebook)
Her wealthy parents, Sterling and Shelli Gardner, used an LLC to secretly purchase a $1 million home for her in West Richland, Washington, property records show.
Fernandez did not make the cross-country move with his wife and had moved out of the Jacksonville Beach home the couple co-owns weeks after the slaying, according to neighbors.
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The couple is represented by high-powered criminal defense lawyer Henry Coxe III, who declined to comment on the major break in the case.
Rebecca Rosenberg is a veteran journalist and book author with a focus on crime and criminal justice. Email tips to rebecca.rosenberg@fox.com and @ReRosenberg.
