NASSAU COUNTY, Fla. — The woman accused of attempting to help the suspected killer of a Nassau County deputy evade arrest pleaded guilty on Tuesday.
In September, the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office arrested Breiana Tole, now 28, of Jacksonville, the same day Patrick McDowell was captured at a baseball field in Callahan following a five-day manhunt.
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McDowell was named as the suspect who shot Deputy Joshua Moyers twice, including once in the back, during a traffic stop in Callahan.
After the murder of Moyers, Tole tried to help McDowell by removing him from the area where deputies were searching for him, NCSO stated. The two were communicating on social media, deputies said.
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Investigators said McDowell gave her the exact spot to meet him at. Tole drove to a baseball field in Callahan on Ball Park Road, but when she saw two NCSO patrol vehicles, deputies said she turned around and sped off.
On Tuesday, Tole entered her plea of guilty to a charge of accessory after the fact, which is a felony.
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The judge accepted Tole’s plea and said he would set another date for Tole’s sentencing.
Attorneys said, based on her entering a plea of guilty, that Tole would likely be available to testify in McDowell’s murder trial.
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McDowell’s next pre-trial hearing is scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 25 at 8:30 a.m. and there are death penalty motions in his case scheduled for Sept. 26.
The judge in Tole’s case scheduled a status hearing for Thursday, Oct. 20.
She faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison.
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