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Arrests made in the Sean Taylor murder case

It appears the suspects came to the home to burglarize it and that at least one of them knew Taylor personally. If found guilty, I hope they all rot in jail.

LEHIGH ACRES — Miami-Dade police and prosecutors have arrested four people in connection with this week’s slaying of NFL star Sean Taylor.

The men: Jason Mitchell, 19, Eric Rivera, 17, Charles Wardlow, 18 and Venjah Hunte, 20. They will be charged with murder.

Miami-Dade Director Robert Parker said Friday night that the men targeted the house in a burglary and did not think Taylor was home.

”They were certainly not looking to go there and kill anyone,” Parker said.

Relatives of Mitchell, 19, told The Miami Herald that he attended a birthday bash for Sasha Johnson, who is Sean Taylor’s sister. Johnson dates Christopher Devon Wardlow, 21, Mitchell’s family said. His brother, Charles Wardlow, 18, was also being interviewed by Miami-Dade homicide detectives.

According to Scottie Mitchell, 19, Jason’s twin brother, Johnson and Christopher Devon Wardlow invited Jason Mitchell to the birthday party within the past two months. He even did work around Taylor’s house, Scottie Mitchell said: “He cut his grass and everything.”

Scottie Mitchell said he believes his brother was home in Lehigh Acres the night of the murder.

Sasha Johnson turned 21 on Oct. 1. The twins have been friends with Christopher Devon Wardlow for about eight years, Scottie Mitchell said, adding that he does not know Charles Wardlow or the 17-year-old.

Frank Fuller, who identified himself as the grandfather of Charles Wardlow, answered the door at his home in a hardscrabble area of east Fort Meyers, and told a Miami Herald reporter: “We don’t know anything. We don’t know where Charles is. We haven’t seen him for hours. And even if we did [know], we wouldn’t talk to you about it.”

Relatives say Jason Mitchell worked at a Bob Evans restaurant and had gone to a job interview at UPS Friday morning before being picked up by police.

FDLE agents and at least two Miami-Dade homicide squads picked up the three in the Fort Myers area Friday morning. At least two others are being sought for questioning.

Police believe bragging about Taylor’s wealth may have attracted the intruders to the NFL star’s home. Taylor was shot early Monday by an burglar who surprised him in the bedroom of his Palmetto Bay home.

Taylor wielded a machete as he tried to protect his fiancée, Jackie Garcia, and their 18-month-old baby girl. The two were hiding under the covers as Taylor was shot.

One bullet pierced the wall. The other struck Taylor in the groin, severing his femoral artery and causing massive blood loss. He died at about 3:30 a.m. Tuesday at Jackson Memorial Hospital.

 
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