JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – With no arrests made in Wednesday's fatal shooting of a disabled veteran inside his Northside home, neighbors are both shocked and scared.
Gary Tripp Jr., 69, was shot execution style in his Merivale Road along the Ribault River, according to family members. Police were back at the home investigating on Thursday.
"I’m holding back a lot of rage," said the victim's son, Gary Tripp Jr. "I’m just trying to stay calm because they didn’t have to do him like that. I mean. they didn’t have to do him like that. He didn’t deserve that."
The victim's son was left wondering who had it out for his father.
"Somebody was in there with him and then they left him in there and they ran out of the house. That’s why the door was open," Tripp Jr. son.
Tripp was a Marine who served in the Vietnam war. His neighbors describe him as a quiet man who was friendly to all.
Neighbors remember Tripp as a nice, friendly gentleman. One of those neighbors noticed Tripp's door was cracked open and his trash can was flipped over near the front door, and called police to come check on his welfare.
Homicide detectives found Tripp inside.
Tripp lived alone. His son said he is waiting to get an update on what evidence detectives have found inside of the home.
"(He was a) very nice person would give the shirt off of his back," neighbor Thomas Norris said. "He was a good person. He was kind and sweet. Everybody in the neighborhood knew him and liked him."
"It scared me half to death," said next-door neighbor Mary Green. "You think, here is a nice man who bothers no one and then something like this happens. That’s very difficult to accept."
The family has began working on funeral arrangements. They will keep us informed as the plan is finalized.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the Sheriff's Office at 904-630-0500. To remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at 1-866-845-TIPS (8477).
This was the first homicide reported in Jacksonville in more than three weeks. That stretch is the longest the city has gone in 2018 without a homicide.