NEWS RELEASE

On December 7, 2011, the body of Douglas Frazier Jr. was located in west Gifford. Detectives began their investigation and ultimately charged Edward Gibson Jr. with 1st degree murder of Frazier.

Gibson’s trial on the murder charge began this past Tuesday, April 1st. Indian River County Sheriff’s Office detectives, deputies, crime scene personnel, a crime analyst, Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Middleman, and Firearms/Toolmark Examiner Mark Chapman testified that evidence recovered during the investigation proved that Gibson was the one who murdered Frazier.

Testimony lasted throughout the week. Earlier today, the decision was turned over to jurors. After just two hours of deliberation, the jury returned a verdict of guilty. The Honorable Robert Pegg presided over the hearing and sentenced Gibson to life in prison after the verdict was read. Assistant State Attorneys William Long and Chris Taylor
prosecuted this case.

Lead detective Steven Stoll stated, “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. We also appreciate the cooperation of the community in solving this case.”

Indian River County Sheriff Deryl Loar stated, “As always, we are proud of the work of our men and women. A guilty verdict is the ultimate validation that we continue to strive for. We appreciate the work of our partners at the state attorneys office and at the Indian River State Crime Laboratory.”