Newly released court documents indicate there could be more people involved in the 2022 death of Florida Microsoft executive, Jared Bridegan.
According to court documents obtained by The Docket, the other people’s names were redacted, although an arrest warrant stated that one of them was a former reserve police officer. The officer, a convicted felon, was also known to carry a 10mm handgun, police said.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, Bridegan’s former wife, Shanna Gardner, is facing charges of first-degree murder, solicitation to commit a capital felony, and conspiracy to commit murder.
On February 16, 2022, Bridegan was shot to death in Jacksonville Beach after dropping off his twin children whom he shared with Gardner at her home.
Bridegan came upon a tire obstructing the road and got out of his vehicle when was shot repeatedly with a 10mm handgun that has never been recovered. His 2-year-old daughter was in the vehicle’s back seat.
Bridegan and Gardner were in the midst of a bitter divorce and were disputing custody over the twins at the time of the slaying. Before the divorce, Gardner allegedly was heard asking in a tattoo parlor if anyone could “shut him up,” in reference to Bridegan.
Gardner’s other former husband, Mario Fernandez-Saldana, is also charged with Bridegan’s murder. The gunman, identified as Henry Tenon, pleaded guilty in 2023 to second-degree murder.
Application Order Bridegan by Leigh Egan
Court documents indicate that Gardner had been frustrated about the custody arrangements and the parenting disagreements with Bridegan for years. Five years before Bridegan’s death, Gardner allegedly spoke about hiring a hitman. Detectives suggested that the initial plans to eliminate Bridegan took shape during the time of the divorce filings.
Fernandez-Saldana, who married Gardner in 2018, allegedly said that with Bridegan out of the picture, Gardner and Bridegan’s “kids were better off with Bridegan out of the picture.”
“Gardner had told her Fernandez-Saldana made statements that he could “get four guys” to “take care of him [Bridegan] and nobody would ever know,” court documents state.
The two persons of interest who allegedly conspired to kill Bridegan have not been charged.
Meanwhile, Gardner and Fernandez-Saldana were in court Friday morning for a pre-trial hearing. They both face the death penalty if convicted.
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[Feature Photo: Jared Bridegan and Shanna Gardner-Fernandez/Facebook]
