LEESBURG, Fla. — New court records place a man identified as a person of interest at a Leesburg park where 18-year-old Juan Gomez Jr. was shot and killed in December.
According to a five-page affidavit, 17-year-old James Fenderson IV was charged with burglary of a home not far from the homicide scene.
Investigators say Fenderson was at Berry Park on December 14, the day Gomez was found shot to death inside a car. Court records say surveillance video captured Fenderson and two other men running from the victim’s car shortly after witnesses reported hearing a gunshot. Video evidence also shows Fenderson running with a backpack matching the one Gomez had with him before the shooting, investigators say.
Investigators say Fenderson had arranged to meet Gomez at the park.
The affidavit says shortly after the gunfire, Fenderson and another teen broke into a nearby home.
The woman who lived at the home told investigators she returned from work to find her back sliding glass door shattered. She said she discovered Fenderson and another teen hiding in a bedroom.
According to the report, Fenderson was “begging her for a ride out of the area” and “appeared to be very nervous and distraught.”
When the woman told them she was calling law enforcement, the two ran into a wooded area behind the home, records say.
Investigators say Fenderson was wearing a court-ordered ankle monitor related to a prior arrest. Records show the monitor was later cut off near a beauty supply store not far from the homicide scene.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Bloodhound Unit tracked a scent from the shooting scene along Johns Avenue and west directly to the burglarized home, according to investigators.
Fenderson has not been charged in connection with Gomez’s death. He is currently charged only with burglary of the nearby home.
Channel 9 has reached out to Leesburg Police to ask whether additional charges are expected.
Meanwhile, Leesburg Police and U.S. Marshals are searching for a second person of interest, 17-year-old D’Yuntre Wright.
Court records mention someone with the last name Wright as a defendant. Channel 9 is working to confirm with investigators whether it is the same person.
Investigators are urging Wright to turn himself in, saying they believe he may have information about what happened to Juan Gomez Jr.
Investigators ask that if you know anything of D’Yuntre Wright whereabouts to contact the Leesburg Police Department at 352.787.2121
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