Skip to global navigation Skip to content Skip to search Skip to footer Skip to site map Access Key Legend
Global Navigation
Open Navigation
content
JSO News
JSO Closes 2023 Murder Case with Arrest
September 18, 2025
Detectives arrested 41-year-old William Bell Jr. after he killed a 50-year-old man nearly two years ago.
 

On Thursday, November 30, 2023, a citizen asked District 2 Patrol officers to check on the man at his home on Merrill Road. When officers arrived, they found the man; he had been strangled to death. Jacksonville Sheriff's Office (JSO) Homicide detectives launched an investigation, reviewing the evidence and conducting interviews. Over the course of their investigation, detectives identified Bell as the suspect.

Detectives arrested Bell earlier this month for the man’s murder and four other felony charges in this case. Bell is currently behind bars in the John E. Goode Pretrial Detention Facility (Duval County jail).

To access the arrest report and booking photo for this case, please visit the Published Media Requests page on JSO's Public Records Portal and search "M481647" in the Reference No. section. 
 
To view the post regarding this arrest on JSO's social media platforms, please click on one of the following links: Facebook | Instagram | X
footer
Video Player Window Exit Youtube Player
Access Key Legend
Most browsers support jumping to specific links by pressing access keys on your keyboard. On Windows, you can press ALT + Access Key (Chrome), ALT + Access Key + Enter (Internet Explorer) or ALT + Shift + Access Key (Firefox); on Macintosh, you can press Control + Option + Access Key (Safari, Firefox, and Chrome). All pages on this site use the following access keys:
Access Key 1 : Navigation
Access Key 2 : Page Content
Access Key 3 : Search
Access Key 4 : Footer
Access Key 5 : Site Map Access Key 6 : Access Key Legend Visitors using the JAWS screen reader 8 or above can navigate using the following keystrokes: H to cycle forward through the headings
Shift + H to cycle backwards through the headings
1 to navigate to the next level 1 heading (or a number between 1 and 6 to navigate to the next heading on this level)
Shift + 1 to navigate to the previous level 1 heading (or a number between 1 and 6 to navigate to the previous heading on this level)
Insert + F6 to provide a list of all headings
We are committed to meeting the guidelines set forth by the American with Disabilities Act (ADA), Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG2). All pages on use structured semantic markup. H1 tags are used for main titles, H2 tags for subtitles. View the City of Jacksonville Americans with Disabilities Act Notice.
End Of Page