JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A man was found dead inside a Westside home early Thursday. Investigators said the man was killed, but aren't saying how he died.
The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office received a call at 4:36 a.m. about a dead body inside a home off Royce Avenue. Police arrived and saw a body through a window, got a warrant to enter the home and realized they were dealing with a homicide.
The man was identified by JSO as Tommy Earl Campbell, 28, who lived on Jacksonville's Eastside, about nine miles from where he was found dead. News4Jax learned Campbell was released from prison a year ago on a conviction for selling drugs. (Shown below in Florida Department of Corrections photo)
Neighbors in the area said they would see people come and go from the home, but no one could say who lived there.
"I never really saw people there during the day," said one neighbor, who asked to be identified only as Lynn. "You'd see people coming and going every once in a while, but nothing on a family level."
Lynn recalled witnessing an argument between a few people outside the home last year that escalated quickly.
"One of them came back with a bloody towel," Lynn said. "One of them had a knife and chased the man and one of them came back with a bloody towel and blood down his shirt and after that police came. Never really knew what happened after that."
Police said they think the person who called 911 about the body in the home Thursday knows more about what happened. The call wasn't made from inside the home or from the street nearby, leading police to believe the caller had prior knowledge of the body being there.
"It's quite disturbing to come out and find your entire street taped off and policemen everywhere and a crime scene van down the road," Lynn said.
"If there's foul play, I hope they find whoever done in and get to the bottom of it," neighbor Alan Stack said.
Anyone with information is asked to call police at 904-630-0500 or Crime Stoppers at 866-845-TIPS. JSO said tipsters who wish to remain anonymous and receive a possible reward up to $3,000 can call Crime Stoppers at 866-845-TIPS.