JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A man in his 20s is in the hospital with life-threatening injuries following a shooting Sunday afternoon at a Wendy’s in Northwest Jacksonville, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
Police said they are currently looking for three men believed to be connected to the shooting who remain at large after fleeing from Jacksonville to Nassau County to Charlton County.
The agency said the victim was meeting with one of the suspects at the Wendy’s on New Kings Road around 2:15 p.m. on Sunday when an additional suspect came up to the victim’s vehicle and shot him in the “upper chest area.”
JSO said that following a brief chase, Nassau County deputies were able to find the vehicle, a white Kia sedan, but it was abandoned.
Around 5 p.m., officials with the Charlton County Sheriff’s Office said they were searching for two suspects on the east side of Folkston near President Road after finding their vehicle.
“A JSO helicopter kept a visual on the vehicle until the suspects abandoned it off President Road,” the post read.
Officials asked residents to secure their homes and report any suspicious activity in the area.
“It’s been long enough now so they probably got somewhere and got some help or changed clothes,” Charlton County Sheriff Robert Phillips said. “There was a report of three Black males or two Black males. That’s what we have been tracking.”
Phillips, who advised people to be on the lookout for any suspicious activity, said detectives have interviewed a number of persons of interest and are reviewing videos and talking to witnesses.
“We got canine units out looking for them, trying to track them, but to no avail,” he said. “Right now, we’re just riding and looking. JSO is working on the investigation, and our folks are working on our end.”
JSO said that at the time of the shooting, one man believed to be a suspect was wearing a beige hoodie with black pants while the second wore a black hoodie with orange pants. The third man wore a camouflage hoodie and black pants.
Anyone with information on the suspects' location is encouraged to call the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office at 904-630-0500.
