JACKSONVILLE, FL – The Florida widow of slain Microsoft executive Jared Bridegan faced her husband's accused killer for the first time in court Monday before asking for his help to end "this nightmare."
Bridegan's widow and the mother of his two youngest children, Kirsten Bridegan; his brothers Adam and Justin Bridegan; and more than a dozen other family members and friends packed the gallery.
Kirsten Bridegan wept as suspect Henry Tenon, 61, entered the courtroom wearing glasses and a white face mask that covered his gray beard. The hearing lasted less than five minutes.
Tenon's attorney, Matt Bodie, entered a not guilty plea on his behalf to charges of second-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder, accessory after the fact and child abuse for the Feb. 16, 2022, killing that left four children fatherless.
MAJOR BREAK IN JARED BRIDEGAN MURDER MYSTERY AFTER EX-WIFE MOVES CROSS-COUNTRY
Judge Roberto Arias adjourned the case to March 21 and set a trial date of July 19.
Kirsten Bridegan, flanked by her family and friends, grew tearful as she read a brief statement in the lobby of the Duval County Courthouse.
FLORIDA EX-WIFE OF SLAIN MICROSOFT EXECUTIVE HIRES CRIMINAL DEFENSE LAWYER
"Honesty, I think it's still sinking in," the shattered widow said of seeing Tenon for the first time. "To think that might have been one of the last people my husband saw is kind of a hard pill to swallow."
Jared Bridegan was gunned down in front of his then-2-year-old daughter, Bexley, after he was lured from his car by a tire placed in the middle of the road in an upscale suburb of Jacksonville Beach.
FLORIDA POLICE, STATE ATTORNEY ANNOUNCE ARREST IN MURDER OF MICROSOFT EXECUTIVE JARED BRIDEGAN
Court papers say Tenon, who was arrested Jan. 25, carefully plotted the cold-blooded killing of the 33-year-old software developer for six weeks with at least one accomplice. Prosecutors haven’t said whether Tenon pulled the trigger.
During the press conference, Kirsten Bridegan said the family knows that he is only one piece of this puzzle, and they will fight until each person responsible for the heinous murder is brought to justice.
FLORIDA PERSONAL TRAINER CONFIRMS ALLEGED AFFAIR WITH EX-WIFE OF SLAIN MICROSOFT EXEC
In her final statement, she made a plea directly to Tenon.
"Henry, if you get to hear this, please choose now to do the right thing. Please help us receive justice sooner than later," she said. "Please help us in this nightmare that we are living every single day."
She told Tenon's family that they were in her prayers. "We can only imagine the hurt and the pain you must also be feeling," she said.
Fox News Digital was the first to report that Tenon has a surprising connection to Bridegan’s ex-wife Shanna Gardner-Fernandez.
Tenon lived in a home owned by Gardner-Fernandez's husband, Mario Fernandez, at the time of the murder. Tenon also worked as a handyman for Fernandez.
Gardner-Fernandez and Fernandez remain suspects in the slaying, according to law-enforcement sources.
Minutes before Jared Bridegan was repeatedly shot, he had dropped off the now-10-year-old twins he shares with Gardner-Fernandez at her home nearby.
Jared Bridegan and Gardner-Fernandez, who both remarried, had a contentious divorce and continued to battle in court over custody of their twins and finances until his death.
Shortly before their divorce, she asked a tattoo parlor staffer if he knew anyone who could "shut him up," apparently referring to Bridegan.
Melissa Nelson, State Attorney for the Fourth Judicial District, announced the major break in the case at a press conference last month and suggested that more arrests were forthcoming.
"We know that Tenon did not act alone," she said at the time. Tenon is being held without bail.
