Deputies investigate ‘suspicious’ Christmas death

The Polk County Sheriff’s Office announced Tuesday that it has begun an investigation into the “suspicious” death of a Lakeland man.

Around 7:30 p.m. Christmas Day, a 911 caller reported Russell L. Jackson, 59, had been found dead in his mobile home in the 2400 block of East Peachtree Street, according to a sheriff’s office release. Sheriff Grady Judd suspects foul play.

“Murder is horrible at any time of year, but to take a man’s life on Christmas Day is unfathomable,” he said. “We need the community’s help to identify this cold-blooded killer sooner than later, and put him behind bars.”

Homicide detectives and crime screen investigators arrived shortly after and began conducting interviews and canvassing the neighborhood. Spectrum Bay News 9 reports law enforcement has also been requesting neighborhood surveillance video from around 6 p.m. Christmas evening.

At least one neighbor said they handed over video to investigators, which details one or two people entering and leaving the mobile home at least three times before the 911 call was made. Deputies say a dark green, four-door station wagon could be a possible suspect vehicle.

Tuesday morning, detectives were observed pouring molds in dirt across the street from the crime scene in order to reproduce tire tracks or footprints left by a suspect.

The sheriff’s office said Jackson had been arrested in October for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

“It’s hard now to see all this and to know what happened,” Allen Deeson, a resident of the mobile home park, told Bay News 9. “I don’t care what anybody says. He did not deserve this.”

Anyone with information regarding Jackson’s death is asked to contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-226-TIPS. Information that leads to an arrest is eligible for a $3,000 reward.

This story was originally published December 26, 2017 at 6:08 PM with the headline "Deputies investigate ‘suspicious’ Christmas death."