A routine drive on St. Johns Bluff Road South last Tuesday night ended violently for a 20-year-old Jacksonville man, who says he was shot after attempting to follow a hit-and-run driver. The man, identified only as Connor for safety reasons, told reporters he ended up with a bullet lodged in his abdomen and four bullet holes in his gold Toyota Highlander after trailing a driver who allegedly fled the scene of a crash. What began as a fender-bender escalated into gunfire, rattling neighbors and commuters along the busy corridor.
According to News4JAX, Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office investigators responded to the 1700 block of St. Johns Bluff Road South around 9 p.m. last Tuesday. They found Connor suffering from a gunshot wound to the abdomen after he had followed the other driver, reportedly trying to get insurance information after the initial collision.
Connor told News4JAX, “It was the most gruesome, excruciating pain I’ve ever felt,” and allowed the station to view X-rays that show a bullet still lodged in his abdomen. He described pulling his SUV alongside the fleeing vehicle at a red light, seeing the other driver make a motion, then hearing shots ring out. The ordeal has left him not only in physical pain but also emotionally drained, as friends and family cycle through visits while he starts the long recovery process…