Daphne Police search for Lillian man’s killer in the Jubilee City’s first homicide of 2024
UPDATE (April 1, 4:30 PM):
DAPHNE, Ala. (WKRG) — Daphne Police identified the victim of the city’s first homicide of the year as J Matthews Bonnell, Jr., 38, of Lillian. Efforts now are concentrated on finding his killer after shots rang out early Sunday morning at 10X Audubon Park Apartments.
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“The deceased victim was a friend of the resident of the apartment,” said Daphne Police Chief Brian Gulsby at a Monday morning briefing. “He arrived shortly before the shooting with the shooter and the female.”
Police say everyone knew each other and had planned to meet at the apartment and that Bonnell had not been there long when the shooting started.
“We know that the deceased and the man that was injured have known each other for years; I think they went to school together. The female was the conduit between them and the shooting suspect,” says Gulsby.
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What sparked the gunfire, police aren’t saying, only that there was a dispute.
Their efforts are now focused on finding Joseph Kaynen Gurley, 23, who has a long criminal history, and they say should be considered armed and dangerous.
“Four felony convictions out of Mobile County, two probation revocations, and he had two ‘no contest’ felony pleas in Florida, and he was just released on a probation revocation on March 20th from the Escambia County Jail,” added Gulsby.
The resident of the apartment who was shot and survived is not being identified by police. He remains hospitalized and was last listed in stable condition after surgery.
Gurley was last seen in a dark-colored SUV, possibly a Jeep Grand Cherokee.
The woman who left with him was dropped off in the Creola/Axis area of Mobile County and is not considered a suspect in the shooting.
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DAPHNE, Ala. (WKRG) — The victim of a deadly Daphne shooting at 10X Audubon Park has been identified.
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38-year-old J Matthews Bonnell Jr. died after being shot Sunday, according to Daphne Police.
Police officers and Baldwin County Sheriff’s deputies were called to the Audubon Park apartment complex around 2:45 a.m. Easter morning for a report of a shooting, according to the Daphne Police Department.
When officers arrived, they found a man dead in an apartment and another man with a gunshot wound nearby. He was flown to University Hospital for treatment, according to a DPD news release.
The second victim was allegedly a resident of the apartment and was going to find help.
Police later identified the suspect as 23-year-old Joseph Gurley. He is wanted on one count of murder and one count of attempted murder.
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Police say Gurley is considered armed and dangerous.
Anyone with information is asked to contact DPD at 251-620-0100.
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