The first of three murder trials in the killing of Microsoft manager Jared Bridegan began Monday in Jacksonville, Florida, with prosecutors accusing the victim’s ex-wife and her husband of orchestrating the 2022 shooting.

As Criminal Enterprise reported, Mario Fernandez-Saldana, 38, is currently on trial, facing first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder charges, along with solicitation to commit a capital felony and felony child abuse

Kirsten Bridegan, the victim’s widow, gave emotional testimony Monday describing her final conversation with her husband before his death.

She told the court that Jared Bridegan dropped off his twins on February 16, 2022, with his former wife, Shanna Gardner, who prosecutors identified as the defendant’s estranged wife.

Jared Bridegan shared custody of the twins with his ex, Gardner, and had two younger children with Kirsten.

The Bridegan couple’s 2-year-old daughter, Bexley, was with Jared as he made his way home from Gardner’s Jacksonville Beach home and phoned Kirsten.

According to testimony, Jared acted unusual during the call, which ended abruptly.

“I remember feeling like it was strange because after I was like, ‘All right, well, love you, I’ll see you soon.’ He was just quiet,” Kirsten said, according to FOX News Digital.

“I was like, ‘Okay, it’s kind of weird,’ and hung up, but it was like a pause and just quiet.”

That same night, Henry Tenon, 69, a man identified as the defendant’s tenant, allegedly gunned down Bridegan, at around 8 p.m., after Bridegan pulled over to remove a tire from an isolated road at Sanctuary Boulevard in Jacksonville Beach.

The bullets narrowly missed Bexley, who was in the back seat at the time of the shooting.

Prosecutor Christina Stiffler told the court that the tire had been a “trap” to lure Bridegan from his vehicle.

“A targeted ambush, a planned tactical ambush with a tire in the road in a dark place where no one would see and no one would know and no one would trace it back to those responsible,” Stifler said during opening statements.

Investigators later determined that the killing had been fueled by a bitter court battle involving child custody and financial issues between Bridegan and Gardner.

“It was pretty terrible,” Kirsten told the court, referring to Jared’s co-parenting situation with Gardner. “There was absolutely no trust, everything was in writing, texts.”

“We did not speak in person, like at school events. Didn’t do phone calls.”

The prosecution argued that although Fernandez-Saldana didn’t pull the trigger, he aided in the murder by offering Tenon $10,000 to kill Bridegan.

Following the shooting, investigators questioned Kirsten Bridegan, who said the only two people she knew who had issues with her husband were Gardner and Fernandez-Saldana.

Following her “gut instinct,” she urged law enforcement to investigate the pair.

Kirsten told the court that at the time, she had never heard of Tenon, according to The Florida Times-Union.

“The killer was a stranger to Jared Bridegan. The murder was personal,” Stifler said.

The defense, howeverm argued that the prosecution didn’t find any witnesses or any communication between Fernandez-Saldana and Tenon that would prove a murder plot.

The defense also claimed that the checks equalling $10,000 were paid to Tenon for handyman and landscaping services around Fernandez-Saldana and Gardner’s property.

Stifler argued that the checks were “a way to hide money for a murder hidden in plain sight.”

The trial continues Tuesday.