JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — One of three people charged in the murder-for-hire plot of a local father was in court on Thursday.
Mario Fernandez Saldana appeared before a judge, this time, without his estranged wife, Shanna Gardner.
The couple is awaiting trial on charges they plotted to kill Gardner’s ex-husband, Jared Bridegan.
>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<
In February 2022, Bridegan was shot and killed in Jacksonville Beach. His 2-year-old daughter was in his car.
A man named Henry Tenon admitted he pulled the trigger. Tenon rented a home from Fernandez and claims Fernandez and Gardner paid him to kill Bridegan.
“Mr. Tenon gave his information, and then my client was subsequently and immediately arrested. He is, what I would say, an essential witness for the government that says my client is involved,” said Fernandez’s defense attorney Jesse Dreicer.
[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]
Tenon has pleaded guilty to murder and conspiracy charges. But Fernandez’s defense team has more questions about timelines and the possibility that more people may have been involved in the murder-for-hire plot.
Dreicer said, “There is some other unindicted co-conspirator at some point, who has not been arrested, who has not been identified, and I should not be left to guess who that is.”
Prosecutors said they’re still gathering information and are not required to reveal their theory about the case.
[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
“A conspiracy on its face is a fluid and flexible allegation,” said Assistant State Attorney Christina Stifler.
The judge agreed to give Fernandez’s defense more time to talk to Tenon and get the answers they need before the case goes to trial in August.
Fernandez and Gardner are due in court again on Feb. 6.
Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.