Arrest
Prosecutors announced Mario Fernandez Saldana was indicted by a grand jury Thursday morning and arrested in Kissimmee, Fla. His arrest came hours after a man previously charged in Bridegan’s killing, Henry Tenon, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the crime.
Fernandez was indicted on first-degree murder, child abuse and other charges. State Attorney Nelson the “investigation remains active and ongoing and has not stopped today with the arrest of Mario Fernandez.”
Prosecutors announced Mario Fernandez Saldana was indicted by a grand jury Thursday morning and arrested in Kissimmee, Fla. His arrest came hours after a man previously charged in Bridegan’s killing, Henry Tenon, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the crime.
Fernandez was indicted on first-degree murder, child abuse and other charges.
State Attorney Nelson the “investigation remains active and ongoing and has not stopped today with the arrest of Mario Fernandez.”
Per arrest warrant:
- bank records showed three handwritten checks that Fernandez wrote to Tenon.
Phone records between Tenon and Fernandez:
- 35 phone contacts in February,
- 30 contacts in March
- 9 contacts in May and June, 2022.
State Attorney Melissa Nelson said a Fourth Circuit Grand Jury returned the following indictments against Fernandez Saldana:
- – First-degree murder: Punishable by death or mandatory sentence of life in prison
- – Conspiracy to commit first-degree murder: Punishable by up to 30 years in prison
- – Solicitation to commit a capital felony: Punishable by up to 30 years in prison
- – Child abuse: This charge stems from the fact that Bridegan’s then-2-year-old daughter Bexley was directly in harm’s
- way during the shooting.
The totality of evidence establishes that Fernandez Saldana was a principal to Bridegan’s murder and that Fernandez Saldana solicited, conspired with, and assisted others involved in Bridegan’s murder, and that the circumstances of the murder reasonably could have been expected to cause physical or mental injury to B.B. while she was in Bridegan’s vehicle.
Affidavit For Arrest Warrant
Mario Fernandez-Saldana Arrested, Indicted for Murder of Jared Bridegan Press Release