Bradenton man found shot to death at his home 2018. A suspect is in jail, cops say
A suspect has been charged in the 2018 fatal shooting of 62-year-old man found dead lying in the doorway of his home, the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office announced on Monday.
Robert McCarthy’s neighbor was headed to work early on April 26, 2018, when he noticed his front door open and spotted his body lying on the ground. The sheriff’s office was called to the home in the usually quiet Elwood Park neighborhood in East Manatee, where deputies found McCarthy dead.
Cody Oxendine, 25, was booked into the Manatee County jail and charged with murder after being extradited from Georgia. He is currently being held without bond.
For months, the sheriff’s office had not been able to identify a suspect, even after the reward for information was raised up to $8,000.
But on Aug. 3, 2018, homicide detectives determined that Oxendine was a person of interest in the case. Oxendine was in custody on unrelated charges at the Henry County, Ga., jail, where sheriff’s office detectives were able to interview him.
During their interview with Oxendine, detectives learned that McCarthy had been shot dead during a robbery that Oxendine had planned, according to the sheriff’s office. As a result, detectives were able to obtain an arrest warrant charging Oxendine with second-degree murder.
Oxendine is also charged with grand theft of a firearm and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
This story was originally published May 18, 2020 at 2:49 PM.
