A 26-year-old Florida man has been charged with second-degree murder without premeditation in the death of a woman found earlier this month in a body of water in Jacksonville, police announced Friday.
Police said Dedric Jaquan Rashan Wesley was taken into custody without incident with assistance from the SWAT unit.
Family members identified the woman who was killed as 23-year-old Beverly Febres, who left behind two sons, ages 1 and 3.
Loved ones said Febres was a dedicated and hardworking mother who would do anything for her children. Her sister said Febres worked for Amazon and was looking into going into the military.
The sister said the family learned of Febres’ arrest on Thursday.
Febres’ sister said after the arrest that the family doesn’t know Wesley, but that her sister’s friends told the family she was dating him. According to the arrest report, however, dating violence was not involved.
The sister said she doesn’t know why he would want to hurt Febres. According to Febres’ family, Wesley is not the father of her two children.
According to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, a person was walking their dog along Sorrento Road near San Marco Square around 7 a.m. July 12 when the dog walker saw a woman’s body floating in Marco Lake near the edge of the inlet of the St. Johns River. Police said at the time that there was evidence of foul play at the scene.
Investigators announced Friday that a myriad of evidence was discovered at the scene and that the victim’s vehicle was later discovered abandoned. They said more evidence in that vehicle led them to establish Wesley as a person of interest and then later as the prime suspect.
Police said that the arrest happened Thursday, following an interview between Wesley and detectives investigating Febres’ homicide.
“I’m glad that further research can be done, they can get to the bottom of what’s going on. Once again, it sounds like a little bit of a relief for the family of the girl that turned up,” said San Marco resident and fitness trainer Trei Walton. “I would like to see some resolve for the people that lost their friend and their daughter and stuff like that.”
The arrest report shows a handgun was used. Sources previously said the woman had been shot. However, people who live near the pond where her body was found said they never heard a gunshot.
In addition, the arrest report shows Wesley living in Arlington about 20 minutes away from the pond where Febres’ body was found.
This arrest is not Wesley’s first run-in with the law. Court records show a petition for protection from repeat violence was filed against Wesley in 2017. That case also shows a petition for protection against stalking.
Two days earlier, Wesley had been arrested on a charge of carrying a concealed firearm without a license. That charge was later dropped.
In 2021, court records show, Wesley was placed on probation after pleading guilty to possession of a controlled substance, possession of less than 20 grams of cannabis and possession of drug paraphernalia.
According to JSO, the investigation into the murder is still active.
Tell us your thoughts...