Right before police announced they had made an arrest in the murder case of Microsoft executive Jared Bridegan, his ex-wife, Shanna Gardner-Fernandez, who was long thought to be a suspect, moved over 2,800 miles away from Florida to West Richland, Washington.
On January 25, investigators reported that they had arrested a man said to have a connection to Bridegan’s ex-wife, Shanna, and her husband, Mario Fernandez.
Nearly one year after Bridegan, a father of four, was brutally shot dead in front of his two-year-old toddler, Bexley, outside the home his ex-wife, Gardner-Fernandez, shared with her second husband Mario Fernandez, Gardner-Fernandez quietly moved their 10-year-old twins and relocated across the country.
Bridegan’s wife at the time of his slaying, Kirsten Bridegan, with whom he shared two children, said she was shocked to learn that Gardner-Fernandez had moved the twins so far away.
Speaking to reporters, Mrs. Bridegan said that the twins had lost their father, and then they had been cut off from their siblings, and now, they were being taken away from everyone they knew, including their school, friends, teachers, and sports teams.
Bridegan and Gardner-Fernandez shared custody of the twins, but since his murder, their mother had cut off Bridegan’s wife and her kids, and all efforts to reach out to Gardner-Fernandez had been ignored.
Bridegan and Gardner-Fernandez divorced in 2016, but they fought over custody and finances of the twins until his murder in February 2022.
Bridegan was killed after dropping off the twins at Gardner-Fernandez’s then-Florida home. As he was heading home, he got out of his car to remove a tire left in the middle of the road. He was shot several times as his daughter watched from the back of the car.
Investigators believe the tire was placed in the road to ambush the Microsoft executive.
On Wednesday, January 25, the Jackson Beach Police Department and the Office of the State Attorney held a news conference. They announced that they had arrested a man for the slaying of Jared Bridegan. The man, Henry Tenon, 61, has a connection to the husband of Bridegan’s ex-wife, i.e., Mario Fernandez.
Property records show that Tenon lived in a house that was once owned by Mario Fernandez.
Tenon has a criminal record, consisting of burglary and battery. Police believe that he did not act alone.
Gardner-Fernandez and Mario Fernandez have denied any involvement in the murder of Bridegan.
