Stampin’ Up! Murder: The Jared Bridegan Case, Charges, and Lawsuit

The “Stampin’ Up! murder” is how the press has come to describe the killing of Jared Bridegan, a 33-year-old Microsoft executive ambushed and shot on a Jacksonville Beach street on February 16, 2022. Prosecutors allege the shooting was a murder-for-hire plot arranged by his ex-wife, Shanna Gardner, and her husband, Mario Fernandez Saldana. The Stampin’ Up! label attaches because Gardner’s parents, Shelli and Sterling Gardner, co-founded the Utah-based paper crafting company in 1988.¹

What Happened That Night

Bridegan was driving home on the evening of February 16, 2022, after dropping off the nine-year-old twins he shared with Gardner. His two-year-old daughter, Bexley, was in the back seat. Near the intersection of Jacksonville Drive, America Avenue, and Sanctuary Boulevard, he came upon a tire sitting in the middle of the road. When he stepped out of his SUV to move it, he was shot and killed.²

State Attorney Melissa Nelson later described the killing as a “cold, calculated and premeditated murder.”³

Who Has Been Charged

Three people face charges. Henry Tenon, a 62-year-old tenant at one of Fernandez Saldana’s rental properties, was first interviewed by police in July 2022 and arrested the next month on unrelated charges. Charges related to the Bridegan murder were added in January 2023. In March 2023, Tenon pleaded guilty to second-degree murder with a weapon and admitted to being the triggerman, agreeing to testify against the others in exchange for a minimum 15-year sentence.⁴ Prosecutors allege Fernandez Saldana paid Tenon roughly $10,000 for the killing.⁵

Fernandez Saldana was arrested and indicted in March 2023 on first-degree murder and related counts. He pleaded not guilty.⁶⁷⁸ Nelson said the investigation showed that “Henry Tenon did not act alone, Mario Fernandez did not plan alone,” and that Gardner played a “central and key role.”⁹

The Alleged Motive and Evidence

Prosecutors trace the alleged conspiracy to a bitter custody dispute. Gardner and Bridegan married in 2010, divorced in 2015, and shared custody of their twins. Court records describe the divorce as “highly acrimonious,” and investigators documented a “contentious relationship” between Bridegan and both Gardner and Fernandez Saldana in the years that followed. Gardner married Fernandez Saldana in 2018 after meeting him at a CrossFit gym where he worked as a maintenance man.¹⁰

Prosecutors say the conspiracy began as early as November 2021, with Tenon joining in January 2022, and that the group conducted a “practice run” along Bridegan’s normal route before the ambush.²¹¹ Investigators allege Gardner told a friend that Fernandez Saldana could “take care of” Bridegan because of his military background.¹²

According to testimony from a Jacksonville Beach detective, Gardner and a friend named Kimberly Jensen exchanged messages going back to 2015 that discussed a murder-for-hire plot, using code phrases like “funeral potatoes” and “doing magic.” In one message, Gardner allegedly wrote, “It gives me such great pleasure imagining slitting his throat.”¹³ Jensen allegedly messaged another person, “Shanna needs a guy. … The kind that performs permanent disappearing acts on certain people.”¹⁴ Jensen has not been charged.

Financial evidence includes three checks written to Tenon and signed by Fernandez Saldana. Investigators have also cited surveillance footage, location data, and a Google search attributed to “J.B.” for a 10 mm pistol. Court-authorized wiretaps on Gardner’s cellphone, her Apple Watch, and her sister’s cellphone produced additional communications the state intends to introduce.¹¹

The Stampin’ Up! Family Connection

Shelli and Sterling Gardner founded Stampin’ Up! in 1988. The company sells paper crafting products through a network of more than 50,000 independent “demonstrators” across the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and several European countries, with estimated annual revenue between $50 million and $100 million.¹¹⁵ Shelli Gardner remains chair of the board; another daughter, Sara Douglass, has served as CEO since 2016.

Family money ran through the Bridegan marriage in documented ways. Divorce court records show the couple “regularly received a stipend from the wife’s family exceeding $8,500 per month,” and that Gardner “provided the sole support to the family through regular and recurring gifts from her family.”¹⁰

After their daughter’s indictment in August 2023, the Gardners released a statement through their attorney: “Words cannot accurately express the depth of our sadness. Family is our top priority.”¹⁶ They have otherwise declined to speak publicly. The company itself has not been accused of any wrongdoing in connection with the killing.

What Happened to the Children

After Gardner’s arrest in August 2023, her parents took in the twins, now 12, and Gardner consented to formal guardianship. Jared Bridegan’s parents, Gaylord and JoAnne Bridegan, contested that arrangement in June 2024, alleging the Gardners had prevented the twins from contact with Bridegan’s widow, Kirsten, and their half-siblings.¹⁷

In December 2024, the two sets of grandparents reached a confidential agreement. The twins remain in Washington state under Sterling and Shelli Gardner’s guardianship, with visitation for the paternal grandparents.¹⁸ Kirsten Bridegan publicly distanced herself from the deal on Instagram: “This isn’t what Jared would have wanted and this isn’t what I want, but some things are out of my control.”¹⁷

The Wrongful Death Lawsuit

In February 2025, Kirsten Bridegan sued Gardner, Fernandez Saldana, and Tenon for wrongful death in Duval County, acting as personal representative of Jared Bridegan’s estate. The complaint seeks damages in excess of $50,000 for loss of economic support, companionship, and emotional distress.¹⁹

The suit also alleges Gardner and Fernandez Saldana moved assets to avoid paying debts owed to the estate. According to the complaint, the Shanna Gardner Irrevocable Trust, created in 2019, held $253,447 in December 2021, was drawn down to $67,041 by January 2023, and then closed. The couple’s Jacksonville Beach home sold for $899,900 in May 2023, a rental property where Tenon had lived sold for $90,000 in October 2022, and Navy Federal accounts that had held more than $250,000 combined were closed. The suit alleges the proceeds went to family members, unknown accounts, or LLCs.²⁰

Where the Criminal Case Stands

The prosecution’s plan shifted sharply in early 2025. Tenon recanted his confession in January 2025, and on February 17, 2026, Judge London Kite granted his motion to withdraw his guilty plea, with prosecutors not opposing it. A grand jury then returned a new indictment against Tenon for first-degree murder, child abuse, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He pleaded not guilty.⁵

Because Tenon’s cooperation had been central to the state’s strategy, prosecutors formally withdrew their intent to seek the death penalty against Gardner and Fernandez Saldana in November 2025, with support from Bridegan’s family. The state has confirmed it will not seek the death penalty against any of the three defendants.¹³¹¹

Gardner’s defense moved in April 2026 to suppress all wiretap communications, arguing the supporting affidavits contained “scant information” tying her to the crime and that the authorizing judge “abandoned her judicial role.”²¹ Judge Kite denied the motion in June 2026, and the wiretap evidence will be admissible at trial.¹¹

All three defendants have pleaded not guilty and will be tried separately. Jury selection for Fernandez Saldana is set to begin August 10, 2026, with his trial running August 17 through 28. Gardner’s jury selection is scheduled for August 31 through September 4, 2026, with trial from September 8 through 25. Tenon’s jury selection is set for March 29, 2027, after the other two trials conclude.¹¹²²

1
Stampin’ Up!. Our Story
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News4Jax. A Timeline of the Jared Bridegan Murder-for-Hire Case
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NBC News. Ex-Wife Charged in Murder of Jared Bridegan
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Jacksonville.com. Details Revealed in Henry Tenon Plea Agreement
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News4Jax. Accused Gunman Appears in Court After Changing Plea
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State Attorney’s Office, 4th Judicial Circuit. Gardner Indicted, Arrested for Murder of Ex-Husband Jared Bridegan
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6abc. Ex-Wife of Slain Microsoft Executive Arrested
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Tri-City Herald. Shanna Gardner Arrested at West Richland Home
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ABC News. Wife of Slain Microsoft Exec Charged With Murder
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Jacksonville.com. Jared Bridegan Murder Case Update
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News4Jax. Judge Denies Motion to Toss Evidence From Court-Authorized Wiretaps
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News4Jax. Will Gardner and Fernandez Be Tried Separately
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Court TV. Shanna Gardner Imagined Slitting Ex’s Throat in Texts
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Court TV. Detective Says Gardner Used Code Names, Plotted Murder for Years
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LeadIQ. Stampin’ Up! Company Profile
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KUTV. Stampin’ Up! Owners Release Statement on Daughter’s Charges
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Jacksonville.com. Bridegan and Gardner Parents Break Silence in Custody Case
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News4Jax. Court Ends Custody Battle Over Jared Bridegan’s Twins
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Action News Jax. Jared Bridegan’s Widow Files Wrongful Death Lawsuit
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WOKV. Jared Bridegan’s Widow Files Wrongful Death Lawsuit
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News4Jax. Gardner’s Defense Moves to Suppress Wiretap Evidence
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Jacksonville.com. Judge Sets Trial Dates for Henry Tenon