JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Three men were arrested Thursday in the death of a Black man found shot to death Tuesday morning behind a dumpster in Downtown Jacksonville. The man was found by a passerby just before 7 a.m. in the 500 block of Ashley Street. The passerby flagged down a Jacksonville Sheriff's Office bailiff who was in the area. Police responded and found the man dead suffering from a gunshot wound.
Police have not identified the victim at this time, other than his race and age.
Following a massive police presence Wednesday in the Stonehurst neighborhood of St. Johns County, JSO announced the arrest of three men in the Tuesday killing.
Ryan Nichols, 19, is charged with murder and Daniel DeGuardia, 18, and Holden Dodson, 21, are charged with accessory after the fact, according to a news release from JSO.
During the heavy police activity in St. Johns County on Wednesday, authorities told First Coast News it was a joint investigation between St. Johns County Sheriff's Office and Jacksonville Sheriff's Office regarding a homicide suspect.
While First Coast News was on the scene, a 2016 Grey Jeep Grand Cherokee was towed from a home on Hawkinge Court.
A short time later, 10 miles from the home on Hawkinge Court, another scene involving the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office Crisis Negotiation Unit, deputies, and armored vehicles pulled up to a home on Grove Bluff Road in Fruit Cove.
The three suspects appeared before Duval County County Circuit Court Judge Kim Sadler on Thursday.
Nichols, who is charged with murder, was ordered to be held without bond. He is also charged with altering records/physical evidence.
Bond for DeGuardia, charged with accessory after the fact, was set at $503,000. Dodson, charged with the same crime, had his bond set at $203,000. As Judge Sadler mispronounced the names of his codefendants, Dodson appeared to laugh at her and scoffed at the charges when she read them.
Sadler told DeGuardia and Dodson that both of their charges could be changed to hate crimes.
"I’m not the state, it's up to them, of course, what charges they bring," Sadler told First Coast News. "But it was just a bunch of White guys chasing a Black guy and I didn’t see any reason for it."
Jacksonville Sheriff's Office Public Information Officer Christian Hancock said that while the investigation is still active, there is "no information at this time" that points to a hate crime.
A a law enforcement source with direct knowledge of the case also says there is no evidence of a hate crime
When Jacksonville police held a news conference Tuesday morning announcing the death of the 39-year-old Black man, they also announced the death of a Black female who was found unconscious outside of her car about two miles away in the 3200 Boulevard. She also was pronounced dead at the scene from what appeared to be a single gunshot wound. Police said at the news conference that the crimes were not related. Police have not announced an arrest in the woman's death.
