INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — The suspect in a 2011 murder in Gifford has been convicted of first degree murder and will spend the rest of his life in prison, jurors and Indian River County Court have decided.
Edward Gibson Jr., now-24, was arrested in December 2011, the suspect in the murder of Douglas Frazier Jr., whose decomposing body was discovered by a lawn crew in the area of the 4800 block of 61st Court in Gifford.
“The final result of this case was a product of the cumulative effort of the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office and the Office of the State Attorney for the 19th Judicial Circuit,” said Lead Det. Steven Stoll in a statement released by the Sheriff’s Office. “We also appreciate the cooperation of the community in solving this case.”
“As always, we are proud of the work of our men and women,” Sheriff Deryl Loar said in the same prepared statement. “A guilty verdict is the ultimate validation that we continue to strive for. We appreciate the work of our partners at the State Attorney’s Office and at the Indian River State Crime Laboratory.”
Gibson went on trial on Tuesday, and jurors were given the case Thursday to deliberate. They reached a first degree murder guilty verdict and Judge Robert Pegg gave Gibson a life sentence.
