Man finds teen's body while feeding cats in Jacksonville park

A man who was feeding cats in a Southside Jacksonville neighborhood told police he found a teenager's decomposing body.

The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office confirmed it’s investigating 18-year-old Deshawn Terell Minor’s death as a homicide.

A man found Minor’s severely decomposed body on Sunday in the woods behind Beachwood Park’s baseball field in Sandalwood, steps away from a playground.

Despite Monday’s pouring rain, Ronald Maichle sat on his front porch waiting for police to show up.

“They wanted to see if I had any footage on my cameras that they can see when they dropped the body off,” said Maichle.

When Maichle came home on Sunday, his neighborhood was a crime scene.

“I pulled up yesterday and I saw all the cop cars there and kind of figured it was a body,” said Maichle.

The JSO incident report said a man found Minor’s body in the bushes while he was out there feeding stray cats.

“That’s bad. I mean, that’s a teenager,” said neighbor John Smith III.

Minor was arrested in St. Johns County a few months ago on felony burglary charges. Now, his death is under investigation.

“I’m trying to help them out as much as I can because I sit out here every night to see what’s going on,” said Maichle, who is the father of a teenager.

If you have any information about what happened to Minor, you can contact JSO at 904-630-0500 or JSOCrimeTips@jaxsheriff.org.

To remain anonymous and receive a possible reward up to $3,000 contact Crime Stoppers at 1-866-845-TIPS.

Cox Media Group