Alachua County Tragedy: Suspect Jason Holton and Ex‑Wife Dead in Murder‑Suicide

 Law enforcement sources say a guy shot and murdered his nearly ex-wife and another woman before killing himself Tuesday night following a multi-county search and confrontation along Interstate 75.

Jason Holt Shooting in Alachua County

Authorities claim the Union County Sheriff's Office identified the suspect as Jason Holton, who shot Candace Pons Joseph, his soon-to-be ex-wife, and another adult woman. Around 4:30 p.m., deputies claimed two ladies were discovered dead from allegedly gunshot wounds near Southwest County Road 241 in Providence.



Neighbors claimed that Holton and Joseph had constantly fought. The couple had three children.

Investigators said Holton departed the site in a black Ford F-150 after the murders. Deputies could reach him by phone as he left the scene, therefore issuing a state-wide alert. Among others, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Florida Highway Patrol, many groups participated in the search.

 

  

Officials found the southbound car farther down the road near Paynes Prairie on I-75 in Alachua County. Law enforcement stopped the truck with a PIT maneuver in an effort to take Holton into custody.

Holton was found dead from an apparently self-inflicted gunshot wound as police approached the car, according to the sheriff's office.

  

Earlier in the occurrence, the Alachua County Sheriff's Office had closed down I-75 South near Paynes Prairie as deputies sought to catch what they described as an "armed" and "dangerous" suspect. FL 511 then removed real-time neighborhood traffic streams as the crisis developed.

The multi-agency investigation is still going on. Officials stated that further information including confirmation of the second victim's identity would be made public as they grew known.



Prayers for all of the victims and their families were offered by the Union County Sheriff's Office. 

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