Major break in Microsoft exec Jared Bridegan’s murder case: prosecutors

Florida prosecutors announced Thursday a major break in the case of Microsoft executive Jared Bridegan who was mysteriously gunned down in front of his 2-year-old daughter more than 18 months ago. 

Melissa Nelson, the state attorney for Jacksonville’s Fourth Judicial District, will disclose the significant development at a press conference Thursday, according to her office.

Nelson, whose team has spearheaded the investigation into the father of four’s tragic slaying, did not provide additional details. 

There have already been two arrests in the case. The husband of Bridegan’s ex-wife, Mario Fernandez, and his former tenant, Henry Tenon, were indicted for their alleged roles in the killing.

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Bridegan, 33, a software developer for Microsoft, was shot to death Feb. 16, 2022, in an affluent suburb of Jacksonville Beach.

He was lured from his car by a tire placed in the middle of the road, and when he stepped out to move it, he was repeatedly shot in front of his daughter, Bexley, who was strapped in her car seat. 

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Several bullets struck the interior of the car within inches of the little girl, court papers allege.

Bridegan had just dropped off the twins he shares with his ex-wife, Shanna Gardner-Fernandez, at her home and was headed back to his own house, where his second wife, Kirsten Bridegan, and their infant daughter, London, were waiting for him.

The doting father and his ex-wife divorced in 2015 but continued to battle in court over finances and custody of their twins, now 10, until his death. 

After the slaying, Gardner-Fernandez hired a prominent criminal defense lawyer. 

Amid mounting public scrutiny, she moved 2,800 miles away to the Pacific Northwest late last year and barred the twins from having contact with their half-sisters Bexley and London.

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Her parents, who own a multimillion-dollar papercraft company and are prominent members of the Mormon community, used an LLC to secretly purchase a $1 million home for her in West Richland, Washington, according to property records. 

Weeks later, Tenon, 61, was arrested. It was revealed he had lived in one of Fernandez’s rental homes.

He admitted to fatally shooting Bridegan and cooperated against Fernandez as part of a plea agreement.

The investigation continued to move closer to Gardner-Fernandez with the arrest of her estranged husband in Orlando in March. 

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Prosecutors said that Fernandez had conspired with Tenon for at least six weeks to plot the cold-blooded killing that left four children without a father.

Gardner-Fernandez has remained a suspect in the case.

A tattoo parlor staffer said that, shortly before the divorce, Gardner-Fernandez asked if he knew anyone who could “shut him [Bridegan] up.”  

]She later admitted to making the statement in an interview with a local newspaper but denied any involvement in her ex-husband’s death.

Bridegan’s widow, with whom he shares Bexley and London, has fought tirelessly to ensure that every person who played a role in her husband’s murder faces justice.

“We have fought hard for the truth,” she said when Fernandez was arrested. “We know there’s still a long way to go before all of those responsible are truly held accountable.”

Fernandez is charged with first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder and child abuse.