JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Police are investigating after a former Jacksonville firefighter was reportedly carjacked on Sunday, shot to death and his body dumped in a wooded area of Eastside.

Homicide detectives responded to the intersection of Slone and Wigmore streets on Sunday afternoon, but police have not released any information other than a body was found and foul play was suspected.

Family members identified the victim as 39-year-old Damon Johnson. They said he grew up in the Eastside neighborhood where his body was found and often spent time there.

Johnson is survived by a wife and two sons, of one whom just graduated from the fire academy in South Florida.

Johnson was forced to retire from the Jacksonville Fire-Rescue Division in 1993 after suffering an off-duty injury.

His oldest son said Johnson nearly died in that accident, spent some time in a coma, and had to relearn how to walk and talk. After his recovery, he went to work for Memorial Hospital, where he spent months being nursed back to health.

Johnson's sister said he never fully regained the used of one arm, which she fears could be why he was targeted by criminals.

His oldest son told Channel 4's Jennifer Bauer that Johnson was "everything dad could be. We were robbed of that."

"He was a friendly guy, had a smile on his face all the time, did a very good job providing the services to the citizens," said JFRD Chief Charles Moreland. "It is a loss."

Johnson's son, who shares his dad's name, is urging anyone with information that could help police solve the case to come forward.

"Make a phone call. It's not being a tattle-tale. It's not the no-snitch thing that's going around town," Damon Johnson Jr. said. "If it were your family member, you would want someone to say something."

Anyone with information about the carjacking or Johnson's slaying is asked to call Crimestoppers at 866-845-TIPS.