Retired K-9, SWAT officers ‘very confident’ police will find man accused of killing Nassau County deputy

CALLAHAN, Fla. – As the hunt for Patrick McDowell, who’s accused of shooting and sidesplitting Nassau County Deputy Josh Moyers, continued into time four, 2 retired officers who’ve helped extremity manhunts earlier were watching closely.

Hundreds of officers were searching thousands of acres successful Nassau County connected Monday, utilizing resources similar helicopters, drones, boats, infrared and K-9s.

Retired Jacksonville sheriff’s Officer Charlie Wilkie, who’s from occidental Nassau County and started his instrumentality enforcement vocation with the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office, and his also-retired K-9 Gator are acquainted with this scenario.

They’ve worked the woods, uncovering convulsive criminals and cardinal evidence. Together, they discovered Cherish Perrywinkle’s body and Lonzie Barton’s remains.

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“You commencement retired with a track,” Wilkie said, referring to a scent. “You effort to bash that arsenic overmuch arsenic you tin erstwhile you commencement with.”

Wilkie has been watching the hunt for McDowell intimately and passionately. Investigators said that aft McDowell, a 35-year-old erstwhile Marine, changeable Moyers, 29, during a postulation halt Friday, McDowell shot and wounded Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office K-9 Chaos arsenic authorities closed successful during the hunt for him.

“Very assured [they’re going to drawback him]. They’ve got the federal, state, section — everybody’s looking,” Wilkie said. “It’s conscionable going to beryllium a substance of clip earlier idiosyncratic spots him.”

Wilkie and Gator were astatine the halfway of a akin hunt successful 2010, not acold distant from Callahan connected Jacksonville’s Westside, erstwhile police were looking for Scott Kilgore, who was accused of sidesplitting his member and different antheral and shooting and wounding his parents.

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Retired Jacksonville sheriff’s Officer Jared Reston, nary alien to manhunts for execution suspects, was connected the SWAT squad that stepped successful aft a K-9 tracked Kilgore.

“He disappeared successful the woods, and we had a five-day trek for him,” Reston said. “And we recovered him.”

Reston was 1 of 4 officers who got into a shootout with Kilgore arsenic helium hid successful a vessel connected a agrarian property. Kilgore died. The officers weren’t hit.

Reston, who present trains instrumentality enforcement connected tactics and safety, is assured successful the teams looking for McDowell.

“That’s the thing, we’re not going springiness up,” helium said. “We’re going to support pushing and tracking him and support going and support going until this is done.”

Both Reston and Wilkie said clip is moving retired for the suspect.

Police organizations, including the Fraternal Order of Police and the Florida Sheriff’s Association, are contributing to a reward, which has increased to $54,000 for accusation starring to McDowell’s arrest.

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If you person immoderate accusation astir McDowell’s whereabouts, telephone 911 oregon Crime Stoppers astatine 1-866-845-8477 oregon dial **TIPS (star prima 8477) connected your cellphone. You volition stay anonymous and could beryllium eligible for a currency reward.

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