The Ambush Murder of Jared Bridegan (Pt 2)

On Wednesday, February 16, 2022, Jared Bridegan, a 33-year-old father of four, was murdered in a targeted, ambush-style attack. He was gunned down by multiple shots at close range in a residential area of Jacksonville Beach, Florida. His two-year-old daughter, Bexley, was the only witness to his murder besides his cold-blooded killer. 

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Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Tell me a true crime story. Hey there, welcome to episode 26 of Tell Me a True Crime Story. I'm your host, holly. This is an ongoing story that has not gone to trial yet, but it really needs to be covered. Jared has an awesome wife who, woefully, is now his widow. He has wonderful kids, family and friends that love him and miss him very much, and if you haven't heard part one, go back and listen to that.

Speaker 1: 0:45

This is part two. Jared is our victim in this case. His wife, kirsten, and his family have fought very hard to bring Jared's murders to justice and their battle is far from over. Being Jared's killers pay for their deplorable, wicked act is all Kirsten and Jared's loved ones can do for him now, because Jared is gone and he's never coming home. Death is so final and so heart-wrenching. Today we'll finish covering what we know so far about the tragic case of the ambush murder of Jared Bridegain.

Speaker 1: 1:24

As I said, this is part two, so please go back and listen to part one if you haven't yet. And if you did listen to part one and you heard where I cut off some words and stuff, I'm really sorry about that. I don't know what I did during the editing, but I really screwed some stuff up. So actually, if I am not it's 12.30 am right now if I am not dead tired by the time I get done recording, editing and uploading this one, then I am definitely going to go back and rerecord part one tonight and repost that. But if I am just totally dead after I get done doing this and I crash and go to bed, I am still going to rerecord it and post it, but it will probably be like tomorrow evening. Just wanted to let you guys know that I know that some of it is messed up and words were cut off and stuff. I don't know what I did, but I'm going to fix it. So thank you so much for being here. I hope that you and your family are happy, healthy and together forever.

Speaker 1: 2:30

Before we get started, I wanted to say that I received another five star rating on Apple. It's not a written review, but it is five stars and I'm so grateful for that. I'm sorry that I can't thank you by name because it won't let me see the names of the users that give stars only instead of stars and reviews. But thank you so much, whoever you are, and I wish I could give you a big hug and I'm still holding steady at seven five star ratings on Spotify. So if you listen to this podcast on Spotify, could you please take a sec and give me a five star rating if you enjoy the podcast. Thank you so much. So yeah, I guess that's all I have to say. I know yesterday, before we got started, I talked for like way too long, maybe like 10 minutes. I never do that and I like you guys to maybe hear a few personal things about me sometimes so you can kind of get to know the person behind the voice. And but I know a lot of people don't like to hear a lot of, you know, chit chat either. So now let me tell you a true crime story.

Speaker 1: 3:44

We're going to continue with the timeline of the investigation and other notable events in Jared's case. When we closed out part one, detectives had just identified the suspected trigger man in Jared's murder. The suspect detectives were led to was then 61 year old Henry Arthur Tenon, who is about six foot three and weighs approximately 259 pounds. They discovered that he had criminal records in both Georgia and Florida which included multiple felony convictions for driving on a suspended license, which classified him as a habitual traffic offender, burglary, grand theft and unlawful possession of firearms. Most notably, they learned that he possessed a blue Ford F-150 Lariat, which matched the description of the suspect truck. On August 18, 2022, henry Arthur Tenon was arrested for possession of a weapon by a felon and for driving with a suspended or revoked license on a third or subsequent conviction. During a police interview, he was questioned about the murder of Jared Bridegain and about the Ford F-150. So, just to remind you guys, we're in August now. This is when they arrested the suspected trigger man named Henry Arthur Tenon, and Jared was killed months before, on February 16, 2022.

Speaker 1: 5:22

Investigators found that the only link between Jared Bridegain and Henry Arthur Tenon was Mario Fernandez Saldana and, as you know from Part 1, mario Fernandez Saldana happens to be the current husband of Jared's ex-wife, shana Gardner Fernandez. Henry Tenon had previously rented a home owned by Mario Fernandez Saldana, located at 5239 Potomac Avenue in Northwest Jacksonville, and some sources familiar with Henry Tenon told news outlets that Henry Tenon sometimes worked for Mario Fernandez Saldana, doing odd jobs here and there. In October of 2022, investigators received Henry Tenon's financial records from his bank. They found three handwritten checks from Mario Fernandez Saldana to Henry Tenon. The amount of each check has not been disclosed. Apparently, henry Tenon's lease ended at the home he rented from Mario Fernandez Saldana in February of 2022. And told police he did not have any phone contact with Mario Fernandez Saldana after his lease ended, except for one time in May. However, phone records told a different story. The phone records showed that Henry Tenon and Mario Fernandez Saldana had 35 phone contacts in February, which was the month Jared was killed, 30 phone contacts in March and 5-7 phone contacts with each other in May and June.

Speaker 1: 6:53

Reportedly, the police and ATF searched the home Henry Tenon rented from Mario Fernandez Saldana several times before Tenon was arrested in August of 2022. At least one of those times, authorities kicked the door down. They were looking for DNA evidence, a gun and Henry Tenon's truck. They left with about 10 bags of items, including all of Tenon's clothes and most of his electronics.

Speaker 1: 7:18

Henry Tenon had been kept in custody since August of 2022 when he'd been arrested on the unrelated felony driving charge and possession of a weapon by a felon charge. He was awaiting trial on those charges when, on January 24 of this year, 2023, an affidavit for arrest warrant was issued for him in the murder of Jared Breitigan, charging him with the following offenses Second-degree murder with a weapon, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, accessory after the fact to a capital felony, and child abuse. The child abuse charge stems from the emotional trauma suffered by little Bexley as her dad was gunned down in front of her. Reportedly, authorities learned during their investigation that Henry Tenon became involved in the conspiracy to murder Jared Breitigan a little over a month before the killing occurred, on January 4, 2022. A year after Jared's death, in February of 2023, jared's case was featured on Dr Phil and Kirsten was interviewed.

Speaker 2: 9:02

Tell me what it's been like for the last year. I don't even know how to describe it. For the first few months it almost seemed like it wasn't real. You know, I would still expect to see him pull in the driveway and walk through the door, and then the moments where it was sinking in were excruciating. I had nights where I would just scream. My parents would stay here and, thankfully, help us through that. But it's been really tough and on top of losing him, you know not having answers, not being able to answer our daughter when she asks why daddy isn't coming back, why her siblings aren't here. It's just been an excruciating year.

Speaker 1: 9:41

In March of 2023, henry Tenon pleaded guilty to second-degree murder with a weapon and agreed to testify truthfully against any accomplice. On March 16, 2023, mario Fernandez Saldana was indicted by a grand jury. According to the indictment, he plotted the murder of Jared Bridegain in the four months leading up to the killing, starting on November 1, 2021. Maria Fernandez-Saldana was indicted on the following charges First-degree murder with a weapon, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, solicitation to commit a capital felony and child abuse. Concurrent with his indictment, maria Fernandez-Saldana was arrested in Kissimmee, florida, by a law enforcement team comprised of Jacksonville Beach police officers, orange County Sheriff's deputies and ATF agents. After Mario's arrest, stampin' Up's leadership team sent a letter to the company's demonstrators, which is what they call their independent sales consultants. The letter read quote as a Stampin' Up leader, we feel it's important to communicate with you regarding a Gardner family matter. Stampin' Up is aware that Mario Fernandez, shana Gardner's current husband, has been arrested in conjunction with an ongoing investigation. Shana, shelley and Sterling's daughter and Mario have been separated for an extended period of time. We have no further details about the situation other than what has been reported by the media. We understand that some demonstrators have received troubling comments about this matter on their social media platforms. Please feel free to delete comments of an inappropriate nature and block slash report those commenters on your personal accounts. You may also share this email with your teams if needed. Stampin' Up's longstanding commitment to you and all of our demonstrators is unwavering. Thank you for your concern and continued support. Sincerely Stampin' Up. End quote. Now I just wanted to remind you that Stampin' Up is the company that is owned by Shelley Gardner, who is Shana Gardner's mom, and Shana is Jared Bridegans ex-wife. So, near the end of March of 2023, jesse Dracer, the attorney that started representing Mario Fernandez Saldana sometime after his arrest, gave the following statement to News4Jax. Quote Mr Fernandez has been brought and transferred to DeVall County and we are in the very early stages of the process. We will be filing a plea of not guilty at his arraignment. Mr Fernandez learned, along with the public, at the State Attorney's Press Conference, that Henry Tenon was responsible for the death of Mr Bridegans, and we understand that he entered a plea of guilty at his arraignment for that crime. It is Mr Fernandez's intention to litigate this case in a courtroom and not in the court of public opinion, and we don't believe it's proper to comment on pending litigation. End quote On April 4, 2023, mario Fernandez Saldana pleaded not guilty to the charges. On May 5, 2023, the state announced their intention to seek the death penalty against him for the murder of Jared Bridegans. Prosecutors have said that he will not be offered a plea deal. The case will be prosecuted by Assistant State Attorney Christina Stifler.

Speaker 1: 13:15

The press release regarding the indictment and arrest of Mario Fernandez Saldana says quote an extensive investigation revealed Fernandez Saldana was integral to the solicitation, conspiracy and murder of Jared Bridegans. End quote State Attorney Melissa Nelson said in her statement to the public quote we remain committed to seek the truth, the entire truth, and holding accountable every individual involved in the murder of Jared Bridegans. End quote. Now I normally don't interject my opinion very often here on my podcast. I aim to just bring you guys all of the facts, but when I heard that line from State Attorney Melissa Nelson, all I can think is that Shana Gardner Fernandez must have been shaking in her boots, knowing that it was just a matter of time before she was arrested too. Mario Fernandez Saldana was extradited back to DeVall County Last month. In mid-August, jared's case was featured on the Dr Phil Show again On Thursday, august 17, 2023, state Attorney Melissa Nelson spoke at a press briefing announcing the indictment by a fourth judicial circuit grand jury and the subsequent arrest of Shana Gardner Fernandez.

Speaker 1: 14:30

Standing with State Attorney Melissa Nelson At the briefing were detectives from the Jacksonville Beach Police Department and ATF agents from the Jacksonville Field Office. She opened up by saying that the announcement would be the last public update on the case. She went on to say, quote we promised at the outset of this investigation we would not relent until we uncovered the truth of Jared's murder, the whole and entire truth. End quote State Attorney Melissa Nelson was arrested for the murder of Jared Bridegans. State Attorney Melissa Nelson said the grand jury indicted Shana Gardner Fernandez for first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, solicitation to commit first-degree murder and child abuse in relation to the murder of Jared Bridegans. She said quote Shana Gardner's indictment acknowledges her central and key role in the cold, calculated and premeditated murder of Jared Bridegans.

Speaker 1: 15:27

End quote. Shana's indictment says that she may have been scheming to kill Jared Bridegans as far back as May of 2015. Count two, which is conspiracy to commit murder of her indictment states, quote Mario Enrique Fernandez-Saldana and Shana Lee Gardner on or between May 1st 2015 and March 16, 2023 in the county of Duvall and the state of Florida did agree conspire, combine or confederate with other human beings to affect the death of Jared Bridegans, a human being end quote. State Attorney Melissa Nelson also announced the state's intention to seek the death penalty in this case, just as the state will seek the death penalty against Mario Fernandez-Saldana.

Speaker 1: 16:16

Afterward, kirsten, jared's widow, spoke to the press about her and Jared's family being kept from seeing the twins quote. Our hearts and minds have been with Liam and Abby since the day of Jared's murder, but especially for the past year and a half. Liam and Abby have been isolated and kept away from us while they lived with their mother, their stepdad and their maternal grandparents. Despite my constant request to see or speak to them, I have been denied and continuously ignored. So I will take this opportunity to do it again. End quote. And Kirsten addressed the gardeners directly.

Speaker 3: 16:57

I plead with the gardeners to put the emotional and mental well-being of Liam Abbey above all else and allow them to reconnect with us. We are their family. We love them. We have prayed for them every single day for the last 547 days since they were ripped away and isolated from us. The kids deserve all the love and support possible as we work through this next chapter. Please do not continue to add to their pain. Let our children be siblings again and put them first and do what's right. Thank you.

Speaker 1: 17:35

Adam Bridegain spoke too. He spoke to his brother that he lost forever.

Speaker 4: 17:42

I wanted to speak to Jared. Jared, we shouldn't be here today. You should be making us laugh and spending time with your family. Your siblings miss you every day. There is a pain in our hearts that will never go away. Your parents miss you. Your wife misses you. Your children miss you.

Speaker 1: 18:13

When a reporter asked Kirsten how she felt about the fact that the prosecutor is seeking the death penalty in this case, this is what Kirsten said.

Speaker 2: 18:22

State Attorney Melissa Nelson said that the state intends to seek the death penalty against.

Speaker 3: 18:28

Shawna and Mario. Does anyone from the family have a comment about that? A life was taken and countless lives are impacted by that, so I believe that the harshest punishment is justified here.

Speaker 2: 18:45

Thank you guys Appreciate it. Thank you as.

Speaker 1: 18:47

State Attorney Melissa Nelson, mentioned at the press briefing over 2,800 miles to the Northwest. Shawna was arrested in West Richland, washington, just before 9 am. She was taken in by ATF agents with the Washington field division, officers of the West Richland Police Department and a detective from Jackson ville Beach that has been working this case. Police body cam footage opens up with officers standing near patrol cars that are parked in the cul-de-sac near Shawna's home while other officers are at the front door. Then the video moves to the front door area and Shawna's mom, shelley, can be seen sitting in a chair on the front porch crying. Shelley is wearing eyeglasses and all black, a black tank top, black workout tights, black tennis shoes and a black baseball cap. Her medium-length, light brown hair is pulled into a low ponytail. She asks an officer quote can I be with the kids or can you at least bring the kids out to me? End quote. The doorway to the house is open but it's blurred out for the privacy of the children. I assume Shawna is brought out of the house barefoot, with her hair down, wearing shorts and a t-shirt and in handcuffs. She is sat down in the chair opposite her mom. Walking right behind her were two ATF agents, one of them armed with an assault rifle. A female officer comes out of the open front doorway with sandals for Shawna and places them on the ground in front of her. Then someone I think her mom says quote, you want me, can I go get her pants? End quote. Shawna leans forward, looks in the open doorway and tells her daughter, abby, that she has orders on her Instagram. Then you can hear what sounds like a young boy's voice. Say quote, where are your jeans, mom? End quote.

Speaker 1: 20:39

The children sound calm. They do not sound upset. Shawna informs officers that she takes medication and they discuss if she can take it with her to jail or not. Shawna's jeans are brought to the front door. Then Shawna is escorted back into the house to put them on in the bathroom. There's more discussion about Shawna's prescriptions. Then officers come out of the house with Shawna again. Her hands are cuffed behind her back and she's wearing jeans and the same t-shirt. She's then escorted to a white police cruiser with the West Richland Police Department. As she's walking to the cruiser, a female, who I presume is her mom, shelley yells out love you, honey. A female ATF agent helps Shawna into the cruiser. Then officers discuss her medication again and where she's being transported to. Shawna was taken to the West Richland Police Department, then to the Benton County Jail. During her arrest, shawna remained calm. Now I'm going to play a sound bite for you from that body cam footage of Shanna's arrest.

Speaker 3: 22:52

You have orders on your on the Instagram. That is managing for you. You have orders.

Speaker 2: 23:13

So they're going to need the prescriptions in their pill bottle.

Speaker 1: 23:40

The home in Washington state where Shanna was living with Liam and Abby. The home where she was arrested is located at 4754 Laurel Drive in West Richland, washington. The house is modern and beautiful. It's 3,300 square feet and has two stories, a basement, six bedrooms, four bathrooms and a three car garage. It's situated up on a ridge and the view surrounding it is quite spectacular. It's been reported that her parents own the home. I did some research on the home and from what I could find is that the home was built on the last lot in the cul-de-sac. The half acre lot sold for $146,000 in October of 2019. The house was built by Kraftmark Custom Homes, a company out of Richland Washington. It was purchased for a million dollars in September of 2022 from a company named Blue XTERRA LLC by a company named Whitesand LLC in Utah. I couldn't find out much about the company that purchased it, the Whitesand LLC, or if her parents are affiliated with that company or not.

Speaker 1: 24:51

Following Shanna's indictment and arrest, stampin' Up's leadership team sent emails to their demonstrators or independent sales consultants. The email read quote the recent news about the gardener's daughter, shanna, is difficult. Shelley and Sterling have shared a statement in which they respectfully request privacy regarding this personal matter as they focus on providing love and support to their family. End quote. The statement released from the gardener's reads quote words cannot accurately express the depth of our sadness. Family is our top priority. We love our daughter and are focused on supporting her and our entire family as we help our grandchildren navigate this difficult and very confusing time. For their sake and all involved, we caution against further speculation and request privacy as the legal process runs its course. In the meantime, we are thankful for the continued support, thoughtfulness and prayers being so generously shared by friends and loved ones. End quote.

Speaker 1: 25:53

Shanna did not waive the extradition process to DuFall County, florida. In a court appearance the day after she was arrested, shanna, dressed in dark green inmate scrubs, was represented by attorney Andrew Wagley and appeared in front of Benton County Superior Court Commissioner Megan Whitmire. A court commissioner is a person chosen by the court, used to ease the caseload of judges. They have the power to hear certain types of legal matters and make decisions in them. When Commissioner Megan Whitmire asked Shanna's attorney what his client's intentions were in relation to her extradition back to Florida, he responded by saying quote your honor. At this juncture we do not anticipate waiving extradition. We want to look into the habeas corpus procedure and we would ask the court to set a hearing down the line so that we may address that end quote. The next hearing on the extradition matter is scheduled for September 14th at 8.30 am. In the meantime, shanna is being held without bail on a fugitive warrant in the Benton County Jail.

Speaker 1: 26:59

Kirsten Bridegain, jarrod's widow, began the Bridegain Foundation in September of 2022 in response to what Bexley went through the night her dad was murdered right in front of her. Witnesses that came upon the scene found two-year-old Bexley crying, still strapped into her car seat in the back. Kirsten later learned that she'd sat in that car seat alone, scared, confused and crying, for three whole minutes within feet of her dad's body, before she was rescued by a couple. Bexley was taken to the police station to be cared for while Kirsten was located and notified. The couple at the scene had given little Bexley a blanket and the police department had a coloring book, but Kirsten and Bexley ended up being at the police station for an extended period of time that night, like a long time. While Kirsten spoke with police and answered their questions, she didn't think to take a diaper bag with her to the station. She'd needed a diaper for Bexley and they had one at the station, but it was one size too small. It fit, but, as Kirsten explains on Instagram, she realized that there was a need for more essentials and comfort items for little ones that become involved in similar traumatic situations, as Bexley was thrust into that night. So to help fill that need, kirsten started the Breitigen Foundation. What the nonprofit does is put together and distribute Bexley boxes to police departments and other agencies that deal with children that are victims of violent crime. It helps the agencies be better equipped to comfort and console a traumatized child. Bexley boxes contain essentials like sippy cups, snacks, formula diapers and wipes, but they also contain comfort items such as kid blankets, books, stuffed animals, toys and coloring supplies. Kirsten appealed to the public on Instagram to donate items for Bexley boxes and the response was overwhelming. It was so heartwarming to see that she received so many items and gift cards. The things that we can accomplish together are just amazing, so encouraging and uplifting. The Jacksonville Beach Police Department, where Bexley had been on the night her dad was killed, was the recipient of the very first Bexley box in October of 2022., according to Kirsten's website, breitigenfoundationorg, so far there have been 31 Bexley boxes delivered to law enforcement agencies and victim services offices in many different states.

Speaker 1: 29:35

Kirsten said that Bexley often recalls what she witnessed the night her dad was killed, saying boom, boom, boom, daddy. On the ground. Kirsten said Bexley has a lot of questions and some of them she can't answer. She asked where her dad is and why he isn't there. Kirsten tells her that her daddy's body did not get better and that he's with God. Then Bexley asks why, and Kirsten tells her that someone hurt him.

Speaker 1: 30:04

I'm going to read an excerpt from an article in the Florida Times Union by Dan Scanlon, written about a candlelight vigil that was held a couple months after Jared's murder. Quote Three minutes of silence was asked of the crowd who held candles flickering in the breeze as a bird sang in a nearby tree. The three minutes signified the time that Bexley spent alone in the car as her father was killed. Then, after Kirsten Breitigen let Bexley down, the pink clad toddler walked up to one of the photos showing her with her mother and father and pointed at Jared's image. That's my daddy, she said before walking over to other family members, where she'd even wiped tears from her mother's face. Quote.

Speaker 1: 30:52

Not only did Jared's family lose Jared when he was murdered, they lost his twins too. That's because, months after Jared's murder, shana took the twins and moved over 2,800 miles away across the country to West Richland in Washington State. Even prior to their move to Washington, not long after Jared's murder, shana cut off contact between Liam and Abby and Kirsten, bexley, london and all of Jared's family. Kirsten had been in Liam and Abby's lives for five years, since they were four years old. She had an especially close relationship with Abby, and Bexley did too. Abby and Bexley would have regular tea parties together after school. The Frozen movie was a favorite of Bexley's, and Abby had asked Kirsten to order an Elsa costume for her so that she could surprise Bexley on her birthday by wearing it for her. There's a really sweet picture on Instagram of the two girls together Abby dressed as Elsa, holding Bexley in her arms. Kirsten described the two sisters as inseparable. Kirsten has lots of pictures on Instagram of Liam and Abby and of the twins with their sisters, bexley and London. In a Fox News digital interview, adam Bridegain, jared's brother, and Kirsten expressed pain and sadness that Bexley and London are missing out on time with their siblings, liam and Abby precious time that they will never be able to get back About a year ago on the Justice for Jared B Instagram page, kirsten did a Q&A with followers of the page.

Speaker 1: 32:32

When someone asked if it was true that Shana wouldn't allow the twins to go to their father's funeral, Kirsten answered quote that's correct. I offered to pick them up and drop them off before slash after, but she refused unless she could also attend. That was out of the question for obvious reasons. So unfortunately she kept them from attending. The entire family was. Slash is heartbroken over that end quote. When asked if she ever gets to see her stepkids, she answered quote this one got asked a lot. What answer is no.

Speaker 1: 33:08

Let me break it down from February 16. Timeline of last communication with Liam and Abby February 17. I asked to be present when Liam and Abby, the twins, were informed that Jared was killed. Shana thankfully agreed. My father and I went to her house to be there when the kids were informed, february 18. Shana told me Abby had something she wanted to bring by for her little sisters and asked if that was okay. I said yes and they came by the house for a bit.

Speaker 1: 33:40

A couple of FaceTime calls with the twins occurred between then and February 23. After February 23, shana ignored or denied requests to FaceTime Liam and Abby until March 24. March 24. Shana finally responds to one of my many requests to FaceTime the kids and says she'd like to have a conversation with me first, march 25. Phone conversation with Shana happens. She agrees to allow one FaceTime call per week between Bexley and the twins. I'm told I'm not to speak to them, only Bexley. The kids had their one FaceTime call per week for about three weeks until she canceled the call scheduled for April 18 and said there will be no more FaceTime calls moving forward. I responded and asked if we could at least speak to them on their birthday, april 20. She agreed April 20. Last FaceTime call with Liam and Abby it was observed.

Speaker 1: 34:36

Since April 20, I have sent numerous texts asking for contact with the twins. Since then I either get no response or an excuse as to why it can't happen. I believe my phone number has now been blocked. When I realized I was blocked, I emailed Shana's criminal defense attorney asking him to help mediate visits. He responded and said it wasn't his area of expertise and referred me to her family law attorney. I emailed the family law attorney weeks ago and I haven't heard back. I sent a follow-up yesterday. Crickets. Other family members have reached out as well. They've been ignored. The kids have been completely cut off from their dad's family".

Speaker 1: 35:19

Someone asked how the twins reacted to the news about their father. Kirsten replied quote not well. As would be expected, both started sobbing. Abby's first question, after crying for a while, was do I still get to see my sisters? I held Liam and Shana held Abby. Mario stood away from everyone with his arms folded. End quote.

Speaker 1: 35:43

An Instagram follower asked Kirsten if there are any members of Shana's family that are suspicious of her. In response, kirsten posted a few pictures one showing Shana and Mario together smiling. One showing Shana with her sisters, all of them smiling and happy looking. This is the picture that I mentioned in part, one that they took at Jared's memorial service, and also the same picture that Shana's sister used for her National Siblings Day post on social media. And then another pic with Shana, her parents and the twins all making silly faces. Kirsten said quote I mean, do they look suspicious of her? Not to mention the attacks her mom has made on both mine and Jared's reputations, both of which she had to backtrack and later deleted when she realized she was caught in lies. End quote, since Jared was killed to celebrate his birthday.

Speaker 1: 36:38

For the past two years, kirsten calls for people to serve others and perform acts of kindness in honor of Jared. On the Justice for Jared B Instagram page, a post from the end of May 2023 reads quote Jared found joy in serving others and teaching his children to do the same. End quote. Kirsten pointed out in a post that serving others and doing something kind for others doesn't have to cost money, and she's so right. Smiling at someone is free. So is holding the door for somebody or helping an old person with their bags.

Speaker 1: 37:16

These things seem so obvious and simple, but we're all so busy and we go about our lives not paying much attention to each other. We should all be more kind to one another. It's okay to speak to a stranger, to shake their hand or even hug them if they need it, and they're okay with it. It's not weird, like your kids will tell you, like my kids have told me, mom. You're weird. You talk to everybody. You never know what people are going through and you know they may be very depressed or lonely. Their smile or kind words may just make them feel valued when they felt invisible, and it makes us feel good too.

Speaker 1: 37:58

And Amazon driver was in front of my driveway yesterday and he was rearranging his packages in the back of the truck. It was really, really, really hot out and I was in a hurry. I was in my driveway leaving to go somewhere. I could have easily just left, but you know, I was like, okay, go back in the garage and get him some water. So I went in the garage, gave him a couple bottles of water from the fridge and he was really appreciative of that and I felt happy to you know that I took the time and took the time to give it to him. What a better place the world would be if we were all more cognizant of what we could do to make someone else around us happy.

Speaker 1: 38:41

I'm going to close this episode with words and memories about our victim, jared Galen Bridegain. Jared was a devout Mormon and his relationship with his Heavenly Father and his son, jesus Christ, was a main priority in his life. Prior to his murder, he served as a Sunday school teacher in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to eleven and twelve-year-olds. Jared had a long time interest in videography and he was an accomplished UX designer. Ux stands for user experience. As mentioned earlier, at the time of his murder, he was a senior design manager at Microsoft.

Speaker 1: 39:18

Jared's obituary described him as an awesome father husband, son and friend to many and I can tell you that he absolutely was. I spent hours looking at the Justice for Jared B Instagram page all of the videos and pictures and messages and posts that Kirsten put up there about Jared and in honor of him. He looks like he was an awesome all around father husband. You know son, brother, friend, everything he loved spending time with his kids, building things and creating memories. Kirsten posted on Instagram that he truly loved being a dad and even played kickball while baby wearing. The video with that post shows Jared and Liam playing kickball together. Jared has, I assume, baby London like front facing in a baby carrier on his chest. Liam rolls a red ball to his dad, jared kicks it far and Abby goes running after the ball. Jared, the kids and Kirsten often went on bike rides together and they would even take the dog and the dog would be on a leash running along with them. There's a video of that on Instagram. It's so cute, but it's so heartbreaking to to see Jared there so alive and smiling and enjoying every day small moments with his family and all of that was robbed from him and Kirsten and all of them. It's just so, so sad.

Speaker 1: 41:07

Jared built an amazing dollhouse for his girls and even a laser tag course in the garage for the kids. His brother, adam, recalled that Jared and their dad had built shelving in Jared's room when he was young so that a train set could travel around his entire room. Jared also loved doing home improvement projects with his wife, kirsten. They did a project in the house with the kids in 2020. I think Kirsten said it was a fireplace, if I'm not mistaken, and before they sealed it up and finished it, they wrote a message on the wood and it read Made by the Bridegans 2020, jared Kirsten, liam Abbey, bexley, future Baby. And then there was a heart drawn underneath of that Jared said to have been funny, happy, go lucky and a bit shy. There's no doubt that Jared's wife Kirsten, his family, his children and the world lost a wonderful man that day. Please follow Justice for Jared B and the Bridegain Foundation on Instagram. Look at the pics and videos that Kirsten has posted of Jared with her and the kids and see glimpses into the beautiful life that they had that was so callously, senselessly and cruelly stolen from them. Just make sure that you have tissues with you, because you will surely need them. We all can and should send messages of love and hope to Kirsten and the kids through Instagram. Also, please consider making a donation to the Bridegain Foundation if you are able to.

Speaker 1: 42:48

Thank you guys for listening to this episode of Tell Me a True Crime Story. Please tell your friends, coworkers and family about the podcast. Share a link to the podcast with someone who's interested in true crime stories. Also follow the podcast on Apple, google, spotify or wherever. Please follow the podcast on social media. Facebook, instagram and TikTok are at Tell Me a True Crime Story. I'm getting much better at updating my social media pages with content about the cases I cover and posting pics and videos related to the cases. I posted some videos on TikTok that actually kind of blew up. They weren't about episodes that I've covered per se, they were just like little true crime stuff that's going on in the news. Now some videos that's on TikTok at Tell Me a True Crime Story. If you want to check those out, please follow me there and on Facebook and Instagram. Thank you guys so much If you want to support this podcast.

Speaker 1: 43:57

I just rolled out something new. It's a small way that you can support the podcast. You can buy me a coffee by going to buymeacoffeecom slash truecrimestorypod, remember if you enjoy listening. The way you can support me and it's free is to write a short but sweet review for the podcast on Apple Podcast or give it a 5-star rating on Spotify. If there's anywhere else that you know of that you can review podcasts. Somewhere else that you listen, please do it there for me. Thank you so very much for being here. I truly, truly appreciate each and every one of you guys. Please join me in episode 27 when I'll tell you another true crime story. Big, big hugs to all of you.

Speaker 2: 44:55

Bye-bye.