Man arrested in Sarasota Commons shooting, recruited victim to commit bank fraud, records say

Sarasota Police officers have arrested a suspect in the Sarasota Commons shooting that left one man dead.

Detectives arrested Juan Claudio, 26, on Friday after commissioning the victim, Jamez R. White, to commit bank fraud, which Claudio arranged and participated in, according to a probable cause affidavit. He told investigators that Joseph Brice Jr., another man who was involved in the bank fraud, shot White while Claudio went inside the Sarasota Commons U.S. Post Office, according to an affidavit.

Claudio told investigators that he ducked inside the post office during the shooting because he "didn't know what was happening," according to an affidavit. Claudio was charged with third-degree murder. As of Tuesday, no arrests have been reported for Brice.

Police media representatives were unable to be reached to clarify if any other arrests have been made, if investigators were looking for Brice or explain why White was shot. A Manatee County and Sarasota County arrest search showed no arrests have been made for Brice following the shooting.

On Jan. 19, Officers responded to the shooting at the United States Post Office parking lot at 935 N. Beneva Road at 11:32 a.m. They found White lying on the ground face up with multiple gunshot wounds. EMS transported him to Sarasota Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 12:22 p.m.

Previous coverage: Sarasota Commons shooting victim dies, police looking for suspect

Detectives received information that Claudio, White and Brice had a large amount of money, and that they were withdrawing cash from fraudulent accounts at several banks in the area. A search of the crime scene showed numerous high dollar money bands, a Chase bank receipt and several banking documents in the glove box.

An anonymous source told police that Brice and Claudio had been scamming banks, and there was some animosity between Brice and Claudio due to a large amount of money that was owed to Brice from Claudio, according to an affidavit. The source said Brice was planning on robbing Claudio.

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Detectives interviewed White’s sister at the hospital. She told them that she had received a call from Claudio, and he told her that Brice shot her brother. She also informed investigators that Rubio was running a bank fraud operation, and that White went along to make money, the affidavit said.

Claudio told officers that White spent the night at his house, and the next morning White asked Claudio to take him to the 7-11 on Cortez Road in Bradenton to pick up Brice, who then asked the pair to take him to the Preserves apartment complex on 51 St. in Bradenton. Brice picked up his credit card from and unknown woman and had the pair drive him to a Chase Bank in Sarasota.

Detectives interviewed Claudio and found that the three men went to several banks. At each one, Claudio said that Brice would go inside the bank and walk out with an envelope of money. In one of the stops, Claudio walked into one of the banks and fraudulently obtained $3,500, the affidavit said.

Just before the shooting, the three men drove to the post office and parked. Brice handed White his Chase Bank credit card, and White handed the card to Claudio. Brice asked Claudio to get a $1,000 money order. Claudio went inside the post office while White remained in the front passenger seat, and Brice sat in the right rear passenger.

While he was in the post office, Claudio heard five gunshots. When he went outside and saw that his car was gone, a man told him that they were shooting and his Mercedes had been driven away. He walked over to where his car was parked and saw White bleeding on the ground. When detectives arrived, Claudio told them that he had Brice’s credit card and handed it to them.

Detectives would later find an incoming call from Brice to Claudio after the shooting at 11:41 a.m. that was not answered, despite Claudio denying to detectives that he had Brice’s phone number, the affidavit said.

Detectives executed a search warrant on Claudio’s phone, and they found screenshots of a message between Claudio and a woman who was identified as Jayda McKnight the day after the shooting, where they talked about making a “money drop.” Claudio and McKnight talks about making $11,500 each and the “plug,” another unknown associate, would make $26,000.

There was another screenshot of a check made out to McKnight for $48,541.75. A second screenshot showed information about a Chase Bank balance with McKnight’s name. The photo showed its present balance was $48,548.89.

Claudio had previously two police reports related to fraud. In February 2022, a woman reported that Claudio asked her to invest $1,000 toward his shoe business. He told her that in return she would profit $10,000. The woman agreed to invest $300, and after he collected the money, he blocked her phone number and social media accounts, the affidavit said.

In December 2023, officers stopped Claudio while he was driving and learned that he was on felony probation. A search of the car showed a .45 caliber gun, a check written for $537.80 and another check written to Destiny Austin for $28,376.50. He told officers that he knew Austin, but he refused to give officers any information about the woman. Detectives would later learn that Austin was involved in the bank fraud scam with Claudio.

Claudio was placed on felony probation from September 2022 to August 2024. His probation officer hasn’t reported any contact with law enforcement.

As of Tuesday, there have been no arrests for McKnight or Brice. A Manatee County and Sarasota County arrest search showed no arrests have been made for Brice or McKnight.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Police arrest man in fatal Sarasota Commons shooting