Florida Trial Reveals Personal Motives Behind Microsoft Manager's Ambush Murder

A Microsoft design manager was killed in a 'targeted ambush' on a dark Florida road in 2022, and his ex-wife's husband is now on trial for first-degree murder.

Jared Bridegan, 33, was shot while changing a tire near Jacksonville Beach after returning two children to his ex-wife Shanna Gardner's home. His 2-year-old daughter from a second marriage was strapped in her car seat at the time of the attack.

The prosecution claims that Mario Fernandez Saldana, 38, arranged Bridegan's death by hiring a gunman and that it was personal due to years of post-marriage strife over religion and how to raise their twin children. The defense argues that Fernandez Saldana didn't act like a mastermind and that his actions after the killing didn't resemble those of someone running from the law.

Fernandez Saldana had access to hundreds of thousands of dollars through his wife's trust fund, but he chose not to flee the country. The prosecution also claims that Gardner got what she wanted - full control over her children and freedom to move out of Jacksonville - after Bridegan's death.