The killing of Jared Bridegan
Jared Bridegan, a St. Johns County father of four, was gunned down Feb. 16, 2022, in Jacksonville Beach. He had just taken his twins he shared with ex-wife Shanna Gardner, and his then-2-year-old Bexley, his daughter with wife Kirsten Bridegan, to dinner.
The software engineer had just dropped off the twins at Gardner’s house when he encountered a tire on Sanctuary Boulevard, a one-way road in Jacksonville Beach. He was headed home to his second wife, Kirsten Bridegan, with whom he shared children Bexley and London.
Jacksonville Beach Police Chief Gene Paul Smith said during the announcement of the first arrest in January 2023, that “the tire was purposely placed there to make him stop, which he did.”
“Tragically he began to exit his vehicle to move the tire and he was gunned down in cold blood,” Smith said. Bridegan was shot several times while Bexley was still strapped into a car seat in the back seat of Bridegan’s car.
The suspects
Mario Fernandez Saldana, Gardner's estranged husband, was arrested in March 2023 on charges of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, child abuse, and solicitation to commit a capital felony. Conspiracy and child abuse charges were later dropped. Prosecutors say he hired Henry Tenon to kill Jared Bridegan.
His trial began Aug. 10, 2026 with jury selection. On Aug. 26, 2026, after four hours of deliberations, a jury found Fernandez Saldana guilty on first-degree murder and solicitation to commit a capital felony. One day later, Fernandez Saldana was charged with two counts of lewd and lascivious molestation.
Henry Tenon's arrest in connection to Bridegan’s murder was announced in January 2023. He faces charges of murder in the first-degree, conspiracy to commit murder, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He faced a charge of child abuse, and that was dropped. He’s accused of shooting and killing Jared Bridegan.
Tenon, who rented a home from Fernandez Saldana, initially agreed to plead guilty to second-degree murder. In February 2026, Tenon decided to withdraw his guilty plea.
Shanna Gardner was arrested in August 2023 in Washington on charges of first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, solicitation to commit murder, and child abuse. Conspiracy and child abuse charges were later dropped. She has pleaded not guilty to the charges she faces.
Gardner’s trial is now set for jury selection on May 3, 2027.
Before she was a suspect in her ex-husband's murder, Action News Jax spoke exclusively to Shanna Gardner in June 2022.
