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Boynton Beach man arrested after victim found shot to death inside BMW

Jaquan Perry faces first-degree murder charge
Jaquan Perry appears before a Palm Beach County judge on April 3, 2024.
Posted at 1:07 PM, Apr 03, 2024
and last updated 2024-04-03 13:16:14-04

BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. — A 22-year-old man is in custody after a person was found shot to death in a car in Boynton Beach last year.

The body of, Michael Gawlik Jr., 21, was found inside a BMW on Sept. 6 on the on-ramp from Woolbright Road to southbound Interstate 95.

A call to police said they heard seven to eight gunshots in the area.

Police at the scene said they found Gawlik, a resident of Pompano Beach, with gunshot wounds to the neck area and upper right thigh.

According to a probable cause affidavit, surveillance video from a RaceTrac gas station on Woolbright Road showed both Gawlik and the suspect, Jaquan Perry, were at the store just before 3 p.m.

Both men then left the store in separate vehicles and headed east on Woolbright Road with Perry pursuing Gawlik's BMW, according to investigators.

The affidavit said surveillance video helped them identify Perry as a potential suspect, who was on probation for a weapons charge. On the day of the shooting, they tracked him to his address in Boynton Beach where they found an Infinity that police said he was driving at the RaceTrac.

Police said the Infinity had an apparent "gunshot defect" that had been fired from within the car.

"Someone attempted to cover this defect with a black latex glove, white paper tissue, and clear tape," the affidavit said. "There was also a gray tarp occupying the interior of the vehicle, on the passenger seat."

Perry was at the scene but declined to speak with detectives.

A forensic report in November showed that Perry's fingerprint was found on the tape collected from the gunshot defect on the Infinity, police said.

The affidavit said Perry's DNA was also found in multiple places on the Infinity.

Perry was arrested Tuesday and faces one count of first-degree murder.

He appeared before a Palm Beach County judge Wednesday morning and is being held at the main Palm Beach County jail without bond.