Family of Charlotte County woman accused of murdering her roommate speaks

PUNTA GORDA, Fla. (WINK) —The family of a Charlotte County woman accused of murdering her roommate at a home in the Charlotte Ranchettes speaks on the events leading to and after the killing.

According to the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office, Shannon Rose Giblin, 48, admitted to stabbing her roommate, Paul De Wayne Bradley, 76, to death following an argument that unfolded at his home on Gewant Boulevard in the Charlotte Ranchettes, east of Interstate 75, on Sunday.

Upon her confession, Giblin told detectives she realized Bradley was beyond help after the attack, covered his body with a tarp, and left the scene in his pickup truck.

Deputies were initially dispatched to the home Sunday night after receiving a report of a person not breathing. When deputies arrived, they found Bradley dead inside the home.

The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office Major Crimes Unit responded and began investigating.

Detectives later determined the truck had been driven to Sarasota County, where deputies with the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office located the vehicle and detained Giblin.

Throughout Monday, detectives collected evidence from both the home and a storage structure on the property. Crime scene tape surrounded the house as investigators documented the scene.

She is now charged with second-degree murder and grand theft of a motor vehicle and is being held without bond. 

WINK Investigates reporter Olivia Jean contacted Giblin’s family for a statement regarding the murder.

The following is their statement: 

“First and foremost, to the Bradley family, Paul's friends, all his loved ones and anyone else affected by this horrible, bereaving event:  

Our hearts are deeply saddened by this inconceivable tragedy and the utter grief you most certainly must have been stricken with, by what is such an inconsolable loss. We can only imagine the pain you're feeling. And words can hardly express how heartbroken we are and how very sincerely we apologize that this has been thrust upon you. We are so very sorry. 

We will in no way attempt to deflect blame or responsibility for this crime away from the accused, who is a daughter, a sister, a mother and grandmother to those of us who are her family. This is something she will deal with, and the repercussions of it, every day, and eventually, before Our Lord God. We only wish the paths that have led us here today could have been altered so many years ago, so as not to have resulted in so many losses for so many people.

Finally, in general, we are once again confronted with the pain and anguish of The Mental Health Crisis, and the demons born of it, that has touched so many Americans, all across this nation. Also, there is another issue overshadowed by this today, which is Veterans Care in Our Beloved Country. The patriarch of our family served in Vietnam, possibly the same as Paul did, and enlisted during The Draft. He has seen first-hand what so many veterans experience everyday; a less than adequate system to care for our cherished soldiers when they return home.

We hope this can be an inflection point- the spark of a New Awareness- AND a desire to change these problems for all these overlooked, underserved and, all too often, vulnerable members of Our Society. 

When will Americans get the attention and services, that has already been paid for, to the people who need it, and deserve it, the most? When will our taxes benefit the taxpayers, especially our cherished veterans? 

Rest In Peace, Paul Bradley

May God greet you with open arms!”

The Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office says the investigation into Bradley’s death remains ongoing.

Authorities have not released additional details about what led to the argument that investigators say ended in Bradley’s death. WINK News will continue to follow developments in the case.