Two Arrests Made After Man Found Shot in Palmetto Preserve

PALMETTO — Two men were arrested in connection with the murder of a man found dead in the trunk of a car at the Palmetto Estuary Nature Preserve on Sunday.

Palmetto police found a man, later identified as Manuel Escobar, 32, who had been shot dead in an abandoned car at the preserve on Sunday at around 2 a.m.

Idus Murkerson, 20, was arrested by the Florida Highway Patrol in Santa Rosa County on Monday. He was charged with second-degree murder.

Freddy Sandoval, 25, was also arrested in connection to the shooting, which Manatee County Sheriff’s Office detectives believe was over a financial dispute.