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New York Post
10 hours ago
- New York Post
Florida man arrested for allegedly driving lawn mower drunk down busy highway
Drivers on a busy Florida highway were in for a surprise when police pulled over an intoxicated man behind the wheel — of a lawn mower. Calls began flooding into the Florida Highway Patrol of a man erratically driving a lawn mower down Suncoast Parkway at around 8:30 a.m. on Friday, Fox 13 reported. A trooper then arrived on scene about 20 minutes later and found driver Christopher Spain, 38, sitting on the mower on the shoulder of the highway. Advertisement Christopher Spain, 38, was arrested for DUI on a lawn mower. Hernando County Jail The Florida Highway Patrol stated that the trooper immediately observed signs of impairment in Spain, including pinpoint pupils, flushed skin, a dry mouth, and irritation on the inside of his nose. The alleged drunk driver also kept sniffling, spitting and clearing his throat while talking with the officer. Advertisement The trooper then attempted to give him a field sobriety test multiple times, but Spain wasn't having it and became uncooperative after the third attempt. Spain was then arrested and charged with driving under the influence. He was booked into the Hernando County Jail and was released Friday afternoon on $500 bond, Fox 13 reported. Spain isn't the first Floridian to be charged with a DUI while operating a lawn mower. Advertisement Calls began flooding into the Florida Highway Patrol of a man erratically driving a lawn mower down Suncoast Parkway at around 8:30 a.m. on Friday. Florida Highway Patrol Paul Burke was arrested while driving a riding lawn mower in the middle of a highway in Marion County in 2020. A video of the incident shows Burke — who already had three previous DUI convictions — telling a Marion County Sheriff's Office deputy that he has 'no driver's license at all.' He then told the deputy that field sobriety tests wouldn't be necessary because he had been drinking before briefly trying to perform the exercises. Advertisement Burke was arrested for DUI and taken to the Marion County Jail. In 2017, a Port St. Lucie Police officer arrested Kenneth Burton Alleshouse after he was pulled over while riding his red Snapper lawn mower down US Highway 1 while carrying a case of Budweiser beer. The officer who pulled over Alleshouse said they clearly detected the smell of alcohol while speaking with him. Authorities tested the suspect's blood alcohol level, and while they did not release the exact number, they did say it was three times above the legal limit. Alleshouse was arrested for DUI and taken to the St. Lucie County Jail. According to Florida law, a 'vehicle' is 'every device by which a person can be transported or drawn upon a highway,' including lawn mowers, golf carts, ATVs, and bicycles. In Florida, the legal blood alcohol limit is .08% for drivers operating any vehicle as defined by state law — including lawn mowers.
Miami Herald
15-07-2025
- Miami Herald
17-year-old calls mom for help as man he met on dating app kills him, FL cops say
A jealous 23-year-old shot and killed a 17-year-old he met on a dating app, Florida authorities said. Henry Jonathan Valencia is charged with second-degree murder in the death of Nosiah Santos on May 30, the Marion County Sheriff's Office announced July 14. Valencia met the teen on Grindr, an online dating app, about four months earlier, and they started talking and spending time together, deputies wrote in an arrest affidavit. A week before the fatal shooting, Valencia went through the teen's phone and found out he was talking to other men, and he became jealous, deputies said after viewing their text messages. The jealousy escalated the day of the shooting when Valencia found out Santos was with a friend Santos had initially met on Grindr, according to deputies and Santos' mom. Valencia went to the teen's family's apartment in Ocala and was upset to find the two together, then he and Santos left in Valencia's car and drove to a gas station, according to investigators. Lydia Albino said after her son left, she got a call from him asking her to come pick him up, saying he didn't want to 'deal' with Valencia anymore, deputies said. She started racing to the gas station about 15 miles away and overheard part of the altercation, she told WOFL. 'He's telling this man, who is older than him, 'I don't want to be with you no more. I'm only 17. This is too much emotional distress. And my mom's on her way to come get me,'' Albino told the outlet. 'And he just kept repetitively telling this man, and this man's like, 'Get in the car. Let's go.'' While they were on the phone, she heard him swear, then he stopped talking, she told investigators. Video surveillance from the gas station showed Valencia and Santos pull up to a pump and stop, then Santos popped the trunk and started taking his belongings out, according to the affidavit. Valencia drove to a different part of the gas station and parked the car, then walked back over to the pump and started getting 'aggressive' toward Santos as he was on the phone, deputies said. Valencia again walked away and came back, yelling at Santos as the teen turned his back on him, according to witnesses and surveillance footage. The teen sat down on the ground, and a witness told deputies he was shaking his head and covering his face as Valencia yelled at him, according to the affidavit. Then Valencia shot Santos in the upper torso, and the teen fell backward as people at the gas station ran for cover, deputies said. Valencia is then accused of repeatedly punching Santos in the head before running back to his car and driving away, according to investigators. By the time Santos' mom got to the gas station, her son had been shot. 'He was already laid out at the pump,' his mom told WOFL. 'I couldn't recognize his face. I started asking, 'Is he alive?' They wouldn't tell me anything.' Santos still had a pulse when fire rescue arrived, but he died at a hospital, deputies said. There was so much blood on his face, detectives said they couldn't tell if he had also been shot in the head. Valencia drove back home to Jacksonville, where law enforcement saw him loading belongings into his vehicle and his mom's vehicle, as if they were 'going to be gone for a significant amount of time,' investigators wrote in the report. Deputies said they stopped Valencia's vehicle once he left home and took him into custody, along with his mom. The mom told investigators her son called her the day before 'crying and upset,' and after their discussion, she told him he needed to contact law enforcement and an attorney, according to the affidavit. During his interview, Valencia said he wasn't the 'aggressor' the day Santos died, but he didn't provide additional details without an attorney present, deputies said. Albino told WOFL her son was fun and 'loved by so many people.' 'He was a very loving young man who had all this stuff he wanted to do,' she told the outlet. 'And smart like you wouldn't even believe.' Ocala is about an 80-mile drive northwest from Orlando.
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Yahoo
Testimony in Meagan Jackson murder trial reveals victim killed by .22 caliber bullet
HORRY COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW) — Three law enforcement officers testified Wednesday morning in Horry County Circuit Court in the trial of a woman accused of killing her four children's father in 2020. Meagan Jackson was having an affair with Horry County deputy Coroner Christopher Dontell when she allegedly killed Gregory Rice, whose body was found in the Little Pee Dee River on Nov. 8, 2020. Dontell is awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty in early December to accessory and conspiracy charges and agreeing to testify against Jackson. Jackson, who could be seen crying during witness testimony on Tuesday, is charged with murder and conspiracy. Rice was last seen on Oct. 2, 2020, and it was Jackson who reported him missing three days later. Mark Bonner, who is now retired from the Horry County Police Department, was supervising investigations in the criminal investigations division at the time of Rice's death. He testified that Rice was killed by a .22 caliber bullet and that he became aware that the relationship between Jackson and Rice had become estranged. Reggie Hotaling, a senior investigator with the Marion County Sheriff's Office at the time, said he responded to the Pitts Landing area near the Horry County line about a body in November 2020 and recovered evidence from the body that included a lighter, cigarettes, cinder blocks, tarp straps, a ball cap, sheets, a tarp and zip ties. After an autopsy was completed, Hotaling testified he was given black sneakers, jeans, a sweatshirt and clothing, photos and bullets, all evidence that was later turned over to Horry County authorities after it was determined that they had jurisdiction in the case. Horry County police Sgt. Adam Skellett, who worked in the department's investigations unit, testified about surveillance video obtained from the River's Edge community. Jackson's car is shown leaving River's Edge at about 6:16 p.m. on Oct. 2, followed by Dontell's gray Ford Explorer at 6:20 p.m. He also testified about an interview with Erica Dontell, Chris Dontell's wife, who said she was receiving anonymous messages believed to be from Gregory Rice, saying that Chris Dontell had been sleeping with Jackson. Testimony in the case began on Tuesday as jurors heard from Savannah Rice — Jackson's and Gregory Rice's daughter, who said her parents fought constantly and were not compatible. Savannah Rice also testified about her relationship with her parents, saying that her dad was a flawed man but someone who cared about his kids and the people around him. She also testified that her parents broke up on two different occasions and that she did not hear them say 'I love you' to each other. She also testified that she met Dontell because of her mother's work and spent a lot of time with the family. She testified that she found out about her mother's affair with Dontell by hearing them having sex in another room. * * * Dennis Bright is the Digital Executive Producer at News13. He joined the team in May 2021. Dennis is a West Virginia native and a graduate of Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia. Follow Dennis on Facebook, X, formerly Twitter, and read more of his work here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Yahoo
Sex sting operation nabs 14, including man who hit deputy with his car, breaking his leg
An online sex sting dubbed Operation Travel to Gavel, where police posed as children, netted 14 arrests, including an Ocala man who drove his car into a Volusia County sheriff's deputy and broke his leg, authorities said. The sting was carried out on June 5, 6, and 7. The 14 defendants thought they were messaging with 13, 14, and 15-year-old boys and girls when they were actually communicating with undercover detectives. A North Carolina man visiting Florida with his girlfriend and three children also ended up in handcuffs in the undercover sex sting, a Facebook post from the Volusia County Sheriff's Office said. The multi-agency operation involved law enforcement officers from the North Florida Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, Port Orange, South Daytona and Lake City along with the Marion County Sheriff's Office, Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Seventh Circuit State Attorney's Office. Among those arrested was Moshe Josue Delgado Juarez, 25, of Ocala, who accelerated his car into a deputy, fracturing his leg. In addition to being charged with traveling to meet a minor for sex, Delgado Juarez was also charged with aggravated battery and assault on law enforcement officers, aggravated fleeing with injury, and resisting arrest with violence. Delgado Juarez was being held Tuesday, June 10, without bail at the Volusia County Branch Jail. Joshua Lee Walker, 45, Lexington, North Carolina, who apparently wanted to do more than spend time with his girlfriend and three children in Florida, also ended up in handcuffs when he showed up to meet who he thought was a child, police said Walker was charged with using a computer to seduce/solicit/lure a child, traveling to meet, and the unlawful use of a communication device to facilitate the commission of a felony. Court records show he is being held on $22,500 bail. The other 12 arrested were Julio Cesar Real Chavarria, 33, South Daytona, Mathieu Merveil Kouatonou, 29, Orlando, Niegel George Johnson, 28, Daytona Beach, Sourab Chilakamarri, 26, Daytona Beach, Reinaldo Ray Medina Jr., 31, South Daytona, Carlos George Guebara, 51, DeLand, Kenneth Leon Baldwin Jr., 39, Daytona Beach, Thomas Edward McKee, 39, Port Orange, Patrick James Concree, 40, Kissimmee, Francisco Javier Jurado, 33, Orange City, Robert Scott Shipley Jr., 26, Vero Beach, and Joseph Alan Williamson, 55, Port Orange. The suspects were charged with traveling to meet a minor for sex, using a computer to seduce/solicit/lure a child, and unlawful use of a two-way communication device, the Sheriff's Office said. This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Sex sting in Volusia County leads to 14 arrests
Miami Herald
05-06-2025
- Miami Herald
Florida Woman Uses Bear Mace on 3-Year-Old Over Blowing Bubbles: Police
An 81-year-old Florida woman has been arrested and accused of using bear mace against her neighbor's 3- and 6-year-old children after they were blowing bubbles in their own driveway. Ada Anderson was taken into custody following the incident on May 30, 2025, in Ocala, according to the Marion County Sheriff's Office's (MCSO) probable cause arrest affidavit. Anderson is also accused of spraying bear mace at the girls' mother, April Morant, who told authorities that Anderson, who is white, also yelled racial slurs at the children, who are Black, during the incident. Zach Moore, public information officer at the Marion County Sheriff's Office, told Newsweek that Anderson's charges are felonies due to the racial slurs she allegedly yelled. According to physicians, the use of pepper spray on children-which is weaker than bear mace can lead to lasting physical, neurological, and psychological damage. The chemical irritants can impact a child's developing lungs, causing asthma, and may lead to nerve damage if they enter the brain. Being pepper-sprayed can also lead to lasting psychological trauma. According to Anderson's arrest report, the children were blowing bubbles in their driveway when the suspect walked over to the fence separating their two properties. She then pulled out the bear mace and sprayed the children and their mother, per police. Anderson used the n-word while spraying the family, Morant told police. Morant also told police this is not the first time they have been subjected to racial slurs from Anderson. She provided video evidence of this to the MCSO. Morant told the MCSO that she and her children were hit with the spray and that her lungs were in pain. The 6-year-old child told police her nose hurt from the spray, and the 3-year-old was not interviewed by police. Officer Wesley Kenny, who filed the affidavit, said he observed an orange/brown substance on the fence and that deputies on the scene experienced irritation when smelling the substance. He identified the substance to be pepper spray based on his experience in the field. The terms pepper spray and bear mace are used interchangeably in the affidavit, despite them being two different substances. It is unclear at this time which was used. Moore told Newsweek: "Deputies did not recover the canister used during the crime; however, Deputy Kenny observed the substance on the ground and identified it as pepper spray in his report." The affidavit also states that Anderson told police the girls were yelling at her from their fence, so she sprayed the substance at the girls. She said they were not hit by it. April Morant told news station WSAZ: "Bubbles. Literally, the bubbles put [Anderson] in a whole other arena, whatever was going on with her mind. What went through my head is I thought she had a gun, so I literally kind of jumped, like it startled me…I didn't know what was in her hand…and then she sprayed it." Anderson is being charged with three counts of battery in the second degree. The second-degree aspect of the charge is because the alleged attack was racially motivated. She has posted bond for her charges after initially being held at the Marion County Jail. Morant is attempting to get a restraining order against her, according to WSAZ. Moore told Newsweek: "According to the Marion County Clerk of the Court's record search, her arraignment is scheduled for July 1, 2025, at 9.00 a.m." Update 6/5/25, 9:29 a.m. ET: This article was updated with comment from Zach Moore, public information officer at the Marion County Sheriff's Office. Related Articles South Florida Homes for Sale Nearly Double as Residents Offload PropertiesMap Shows Florida Beaches Warned of Dangerous Ocean ConditionsFlorida Pastor In US For 26 Years Detained By ICE at Immigration AppointmentFlorida Thunderstorms Warning, All Boats Ordered to Safe Harbor 2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.
