JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Jacksonville man has been convicted of attempted murder in the shooting of a former friend in the face outside The Avenues mall.

The jury took under three hours to reach a guilty verdict for 31-year-old Michael Deshawn Williams Jr. on Jan. 22. He will be sentenced at a later date and faces up to life in prison.

The shooting happened during a fight at about 1:30 p.m. on Dec. 1, 2023, in the parking lot of the Southside Boulevard mall in front of several witnesses. Williams was arrested on Jan. 6, 2024. The 30-year-old victim and his friend were able to make it back into the mall to get help afterward.

The friend told police he and the victim went to the mall together and saw Williams, who he only knew as Mike or Ike. They were all close friends at one point, he said, but the victim and suspect had a falling out about three years prior over a woman.

He said the victim tried to talk with Williams to resolve the dispute but was shoved instead, according to the arrest report. They began arguing as they entered the parking lot, until the two got into a shoving match and fight that led to the victim being shot.

A woman said she was parked near the victim’s car and saw him and two other men walking out of the mall together talking like they knew each other but also arguing, according to the arrest report. Once in the parking lot, the victim and suspect began to fight. It carried over to the hood of her car where the suspect got the victim into a headlock of sorts, pulled out a gun and fired one shot into his face. She said the suspect casually walked away and got into a silver Mercedes SUV with a Florida tag.

A detective contacted the victim’s mother the next day and she provided the name of a friend who knows the suspect. That person provided his rap name, Dolly Mike, and a screenshot of a music video with him. That helped investigators identify Williams, according to the report.

On Dec. 6, 2023 at the hospital, the victim was shown some photos. He was still unable to speak but could communicate with hand gestures and writing to identify Williams’ photo, the report said. An arrest warrant was then secured.

Editor’s note: This story was first published by our news partners, The Florida Times-Union.