JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Agencies from as far away as Georgia have now joined the search for Patrick McDowell, the man accused of fatally shooting a Nassau County deputy Friday morning.
The search is expected to continue overnight, said Nassau County Sheriff Bill Leeper during a news conference Monday.
Authorities believe McDowell, a 35-year-old former Marine from Jacksonville, is responsible for shooting Deputy Joshua Moyers, 29, during a traffic stop in the pre-dawn hours of Friday. He died Sunday afternoon from his injuries.
McDowell is still on the run and is considered to be armed and dangerous.
Leeper says teams are combing though a wooded area for any evidence of McDowell, and that crews have already located a hat and other articles that reportedly belong to him.
Members of law enforcement continue to search areas that haven't been searched yet as there is no evidence to suggest that he's not in the area, Leeper said Monday.
"Hope he turns himself in, it would be the right thing to do," said Leeper.
A procession for Moyers will take place Monday night as his body is taken from the Duval County Medical Examiner's Office to Oxley-Heard Funeral Director's near Amelia Island.
Nassau County Sheriff's Office shared the route being taken on Twitter and asked people to "please line the route where you can".
First Coast News will be live-streaming this procession starting at 6 p.m.
On Sunday evening, the sheriff's office sent out the following message to residents. “Tomorrow around 6 a.m. there will be a heavy police presence in the Sandy Ford Road at US-301 area of Callahan. You may see about 200 vehicles and deputies in the area. Do not be alarmed. We are collecting evidence. We don’t know how long this will take. Thank you for your patience.”
First Coast Crime Stoppers is offering a $50,500 reward for any information that leads to McDowell's arrest. You can call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-866-845-TIPS.
Earlier on Sunday, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement issued a Florida Blue Alert to help spread the word across the state in the search for McDowell.