Shanna Gardner told friend she would celebrate ex-husband Jared Bridegan's ... trends now
Jared Bridegan's ex-wife Shanna Gardner is seen in her mugshot after she pleaded not guilty to multiple charges relating to her ex-husband's murder
The ex-wife of murdered Microsoft executive Jared Bridegan told her best friend that she would 'happily' watch her ex-husband be 'given a lethal injection' and celebrate his death with a casserole of 'funeral potatoes', DailyMail.com can reveal.
According to prosecutors who read the chilling text messages in Duval County Courthouse Wednesday during a bond hearing for Shanna Gardner had been plotting his death for years, repeatedly asking her friend how she could find a hitman to 'do magic' and 'make him disappear.'
Bridegan was shot dead on February 16, 2022, in what prosecutors allege was a murder-for-hire plot contrived by his ex-wife, her husband and his tenant.
Gardner, 36, who moved to her home state of Washington following the murder was charged with first degree murder, conspiracy to commit first degree murder and solicitation to commit a capital felony and child abuse last November and extradited back to Florida where she has remained in custody.
Her husband, Mario Fernandez Saldana, 35, was charged with the same crimes while his former tenant, Henry Tenon, 62, has already pleaded guilty to second degree murder for his part.
On Wednesday, prosecutors pushed back at Gardner's latest attempt to post bond by calling Jacksonville Beach Police Department Lead Detective Chris Johns to the stand.
Jared Bridegan was shot multiple times at close range in what police described as an 'ambush' and 'targeted' attack on February 16, 2022, in front of his then two-year-old daughter in Jacksonville Beach, Florida
On Wednesday a bond hearing was held for Shanna Gardner who has lawyered up with Jose Baez – who has previously represented Casey Anthony and Aaron Hernandez
Shelli Gardner, Shanna's mother, was seen arriving to court for her daughter's bond hearing on Wednesday
Johns told the court that Gardner was motivated to conspire to kill her ex by a 'hatred' of him following their acrimonious divorce in 2015, a desire for sole custody of their twins and a hunger to have control over a trust fund set up for her by her parents – something conditional on her having 'no legal entanglements' with Bridegan.
According to Johns, text messages exchanged between Gardner and her best friend Kim Jensen over a period of years show her consistently speaking of ways to 'destroy' the man she referred to as 'stupid'.
Shanna's husband, Mario Fernandez Saldana, 35, was charged with the same crimes
He said, 'This included feeding him things to give him a heart attack. She also said the best time for "magic" would be when they're amicable.'
Breathtakingly, Johns also revealed that Gardner had pointed the finger of suspicion at Bridegan's widow, Kirsten, with whom he has two infant daughters, suggesting they should look into her as a suspect in the aftermath of his death.
But despite her efforts allegedly to mislead them, the detective revealed that investigators had quickly eliminated all but Gardner and Fernandez from their long list of suspects.
And he stated that Tenon, who is co-operating with prosecutors, had provided a statement in which he said he had been offered $150,000 by Fernandez in the form of an investment in his pallet company in return for killing Bridegan.
According to Johns, Tenon initially rejected the request but agreed once
