Murder-for-Hire Trial of Microsoft Executive's Killer Set to Begin

Mario Fernandez Saldana, one of three suspects in the murder-for-hire of Microsoft executive Jared Bridegan, is set to go on trial first. Bridegan was shot and killed in February 2022 while stopping his car to move a tire that had been placed in the road at Jacksonville Beach.

Fernandez Saldana's estranged wife, Shanna Gardner, and former tenant Henry Tenon were also arrested in connection with the murder. Evidence against Fernandez Saldana includes handwritten checks to Tenon and extensive phone records between the two.

The trial is set to begin on August 17th and will last until August 28th. Jury selection for the trial wrapped up just last week, and a close friend of Gardner's, Kim Jensen, has implicated Fernandez Saldana through her frequent contact with Gardner.