Arrest made in fatal shooting of Glen McNeil Jr.; best friend says seeing suspect makes him 'angry'

JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. — Friends of Glen McNeil are reacting to the news that police have made an arrest in McNeil's fatal shooting.

Police said 18-year old Javoris Deandre Price is charged with second-degree murder, attempted murder and armed robbery after police said he shot 23-year-old McNeil outside the beach bars on July 5.

McNeil's best friend, Ken Duong, said the arrest is bittersweet.

“At the end of the day, it doesn’t change anything. If anything it just makes me angrier, seeing that smirk on his mug shot. It makes me angry, man,” Duong said. “I can’t even begin to articulate how much I miss him. I think of him every single day."

Jacksonville Beach Police Chief Patrick Dooley said tips and videos helped police, and social media played an even bigger role in solving this case.

“Within the first few hours, actually, we were starting to get a little bit of information, that there might possibly be some videos on cellphones and those kind of things, that might be helpful to us,” Dooley said.

Police say Price was identified as a suspect days after the shooting through witness interviews. He was already in the Duval County Jail on other unrelated gun charges.

According to a warrant, he was initially booked into the jail on Aug. 21, after police said they searched his Facebook account and found that he had several assault rifles.

Price was previously adjudicated as a juvenile delinquent and was not allowed to possess a firearm before his 24th birthday, according to the arrest warrant.

Dooley said he’s taking security up a notch in the downtown Jacksonville Beach area. There is a plan to install new security cameras in the area where McNeil was shot.

Police said the security cameras that sit high above the beach are outdated, and that’s why they’re being replaced.

“For the downtown area, we’re looking at pretty close to a half-million dollars, for the camera system down there,” Dooley said.

It’s a hefty price tag, but Dooley said it’s needed.

“You're going to see in the spring. We’re in the process right now of installing an entirely new video camera system in the downtown area, which is going to cover most of the downtown area. It’s going to be good technology. It’s going to be very helpful for us,” Dooley said.

Price is expected to make his first appearance in court Tuesday.

Cox Media Group