February 5, 2026
U.S. Marshals Capture Person of Interest in Berry Park Killing of Junie Gomez Jr.
By Frank Stanfield
U.S. Marshals Capture Person of Interest in Berry Park Killing of Junie Gomez Jr.
A US Marshal’s Task Force today captured one of the persons of interest in the Dec. 14 slaying of 18-year-old “Junie” Gomez Jr. at Berry Park
“Junie” Gomez Jr
The “multi-agency” squad nabbed James Fenderson in the area of Tuskeegee and Simmons streets, said Leesburg Police spokeswoman Shannon Walsh. Detectives are questioning the 17-year-old.
“We encourage D’Yuntre Wright to turn himself in to the Leesburg Police Department, or the nearest law enforcement agency. Until then, we and the Marshal’s Task Force will continue our relentless pursuit of justice,” Walsh said.
Lake& Sumter Style writer Fred Griffin Jr. witnessed the show of force in his neighborhood, noting several police cars, and undercover officers, including some who appeared to be from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.
The Lake County Sheriff’s warrants division did not participate. They were in Umatilla arresting a suspect in an unrelated weapons case, according to Sheriff’s Sgt. Charles Pendergrass.
Gomez was gunned down in a car at the park in the Carver Heights neighborhood, a crushing blow to his family who recently gathered at Ferran Park in Eustis to mourn his loss. “I just feel so useless,” Gomez’s mother, Valerie Long, says. “I just want to get a phone call. I want to know that things are progressing.”
Detectives, who are interviewing Fenderson, have not charged him in the shooting. They are urging anyone with information to call Leesburg Police at 352-787-1212 or Crimeline, which offers rewards, at 800-423-TIPS.
Frank Stanfield has been a journalist for more than 40 years, including as an editor and reporter for the Daily Commercial, Orlando Sentinel and Ocala Star-Banner. He has written three books, “Unbroken: The Dorothy Lewis Story,” “Vampires, Gators and Wackos, A Florida Newspaperman’s Story,” and “Cold Blooded, A True Crime Story of a Murderous Teenage Cult.” He has appeared on numerous national and international broadcasts, including Discovery ID, Oxygen and Court TV. He maintains a blog at frankestanfield.com. Stanfield graduated with a political science degree from the University of North Florida and a master’s in journalism at the University of Georgia.
