A Mary Esther man is behind bars with an open count of Homicide in the Santa Rosa County Jail after a drug deal in Navarre went bad and left a resident injured.
The shooting occurred last Thursday at around 11:30 p.m. at the 2700 block of Shoreview Court in Navarre, located north of East Bay Boulevard. The initial 9-1-1 call alerted deputies that an individual at that residence had been shot and was in need of medical assistance.
When Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s deputies arrived on scene, it was determined an adult male, later identified as William Michael Johnson had been shot in the face and had suffered a non-life threatening gunshot wound.
Johnson told deputies at the scene that a man named Cody James Gomez, and another individual, later identified as Jonalbert Figueroa Vidal, both 20, came over to his home and “shot him”. According to the report, law enforcement later learned that the duo went to the victim’s house to purchase marijuana.
The report does not indicate which of the two men shot the victim.
Vidal was later apprehended by authorities and charged with Attempted Murder During a Robbery and Attempted Robbery With a Firearm. Gomez was also nabbed by authorities, but has only been charged with a Probation Violation as of press time.
Johnson was transported via Lifeguard Air Ambulance-1 to an area hospital to be treated for the injury after authorities briefly spoke with him after the incident occurred last Thursday. After initially being admitted into the hospital, the victim was listed as being in stable condition.
According to the SRCSO incident report, the bullet that hit Johnson traveled through his cheeks and broke his jaw. The report indicated the victim would have to undergo surgery for the injury.
Johnson denied law enforcement access to his home, and officials had to obtain a search warrant in order to enter the home to investigate the shooting further. Upon gaining access to the home, law enforcement described the interior of the home to be in “disarray” claiming trash was strewn about the residence and that there was blood all throughout the home.
Upon searching the home, investigators found a one-quart bag of marijuana in the home’s master bathroom. Investigators also located another quart-size bag of marijuana in another room in the home, along with a digital scale.
Vidal
Deputies were able to view security camera footage from a nearby residence, which showed two suspects leaving the residence following the shooting, the report stated. Those two individuals were later identified as Vidal and Gomez.
Immediately following the investigation, law enforcement sent out a press release urging locals to be on the lookout for Gomez, who was, at the time, wanted for questioning in the shooting. Gomez also had an active felony warrant out for his arrest.
Deputies later learned the whereabouts of Vidal and Gomez and traced them to a residence in Mary Esther, which allegedly belonged to Vidal, according to the incident report.
Law enforcement was able to make contact with both Gomez and Vidal at the home at around 11 p.m. last Friday, and Vidal signed a consent form to allow law enforcement to search the home.
When deputies entered the residence, they located a 9mm pistol in the HVAC floor ducts in one of the rooms. They later located 9mm ammunition in another room. The report does not indicate whether that gun was used to shoot Johnson, but it was taken into evidence.
When deputies attempted to speak to Vidal, he told authorities he wouldn’t speak without an attorney present, the report stated.
The duo were both later put behind bars in Okaloosa County and extradited to Santa Rosa County Jail on Monday.
As of press time, Gomez has only been charged with a Probation Violation, according to Santa Rosa County Jail View records. According to the Santa Rosa County Jail View website, Gomez has four prior arrests in Santa Rosa County spanning back to December 2015.
Gomez
Vidal and Gomez remain behind bars without bond as of press time.
SRCSO Major Crimes detectives along with Crime Scene Units are still investigating the shooting.
