114 People Arrested In “Operation Not So Silent Night”

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114 People Arrested In “Operation Not So Silent Night”

Winter Haven, Florida – Sheriff Grady Judd will brief the media at 10:00 a.m. today about a six-day-long undercover operation focusing on human trafficking, called “Operation Not So Silent Night.”

During the six-day-long undercover investigation from Thursday, December 8th through Tuesday, December 13th, 2016, focusing on those who advertise prostitution services in online ads and identifying victims of human trafficking, Polk County Sheriff’s undercover detectives arrested a total of 114 suspects, and charged an additional two suspects with warrants.

During the investigation, female undercover detectives posted fictitious ads online, and male undercover detectives responded to ads posted online by others. The types of suspects arrested were: those who responded to the ads posted by the undercover detectives, or “johns;” those who came to the undercover location to have sex for money, or “prostitutes;” two suspects who traveled to the undercover location to have sex with minors; and others associated with both types of suspects.

“We are exceptionally pleased that we were able to potentially identify four victims of human trafficking, which is the goal of this operation. We are thrilled that we arrested two men who prey upon children, preventing them from doing so. We are extremely disappointed that we arrested a high-ranking official within the Osceola County School Board, whose occupation focuses on teaching and mentoring children.” – Grady Judd, Sheriff

Of the 114 suspects arrested, PCSO detectives believe four are victims of human trafficking, and investigations are ongoing.

Of the 114 suspects arrested, the following will be discussed in more detail at our news conference.

Two suspects traveled to the undercover location to have sex with who they thought were children. According to their affidavits:

*       48-year-old Thomas Davis, of Mashpee, Massachusetts, began sending instant messages to an undercover detective posing as a 14-year-old girl online. During their online conversation, Davis solicited the “girl” to send him nude photos of herself, and sent her photos of himself, including nude photos. Davis then drove to the undercover location and was arrested and charged with Use of Computer To Seduce Child (F-3), Use of Two-Way Communication Device to Commit Felony (F-3), Traveling to Meet a Minor (F-2), Attempted Lewd Battery (F-2), and Transmission of Harmful Material to Minor (F-3). After his arrest, Davis admitted to detectives that he sent photos to who he believed was a 14-year-old girl, and came to the undercover location to have sex with her.

*       33-year-old Oscar Gonzalez, of Haines City, began talking to an undercover detective posing as a 14-year-old boy on a social networking site, and then via text message. Gonzalez then drove to the undercover location and was arrested and charged with Use of Computer To Seduce Child (F-3), Use of Two-Way Communication Device to Commit Felony (F-3), Traveling to Meet a Minor (F-2), Attempted Lewd Battery (F-2), and Resisting Arrest (M-1). After his arrest, Gonzalez admitted to detectives that he believed he was talking to a 14-year-old boy, and came to the undercover location to have sex with him, and that his wife and children were living in Mexico.

Other significant arrests include:

*       42-year-old Matthew Phillips, PhD, of St. Cloud, FL, is the Director of Elementary Curriculum at the Osceola County School Board. He arrived at the undercover location to have sex with a prostitute. He was arrested and charged with Offer to Engage in Lewdness, and Battery.

*       50-year-old Matthew Irvin of Oakland, FL, told detectives that he told his wife he was going out to buy Christmas presents for his children, but came to the undercover location instead, to have sex with a prostitute. He was arrested and charged with Offer to Engage in Lewdness.

*       33-year-old Erik Hernandez of Kissimmee, FL, told detectives after he was arrested that he had hurt his back setting up for his 9-year-old daughter’s birthday party that same day, and that he came to the undercover location to get a massage. He answered an online ad and arrived at the undercover location to have sex with a prostitute. He was arrested and charged with Offer to Engage in Lewdness, and Battery.

*       33-year-old Michael Campanaro of Clermont, FL, identified himself as a corrections officer with the Federal Bureau of Prisons in Coleman, Florida. He was arrested and charged with Offer to Engage in Lewdness.

*       44-year-old Santos Rivera of Orlando, FL, told detectives he is a 20-year retired police officer from Puerto Rico. He was arrested and charged with Offer to Engage in Lewdness.

*       40-year-old Michael Bonislawski of Davenport, FL, told detectives his pregnant wife was at home, and that their baby was due the same day he showed up to the undercover location. He was arrested and charged with Offer to Engage in Lewdness.

Orlando Magic Selected Lakeland To Host New D-League Team Beginning Next Season

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Orlando Magic Selected Lakeland To Host New D-League Team Beginning Next Season

orlando-magic4

Update: Fox 13 Reporting that Orlando Magic will work with the City of Winter Haven for future development of a practice facility there.


Orlando Magic Daily

The Orlando Magic have chosen Lakeland to host their new D-League franchise, the team will announce in a press conference at the Lakeland Center on Wednesday.

The Magic are in the final year of their affiliation agreement with the Erie BayHawks. For several years they have expressed an interest in owning their own D-League team in Florida. The logistics of the league did not make sense at that time with so few teams located in the Southeast.

The roster of NBA teams with one-to-one D-League affiliations has grown and slowly the league has reached into this region of the country.

The Magic had targeted a few locations within Florida, ultimately selecting Lakeland over Kissimmee in the final decisionmaking.

“It’s a huge, huge shot in the arm in terms of image in that a major sports franchise and major league would even consider our area,” Central Florida’s Polk County Tourism and Sports Marketing Director Mark Jackson told Brady Fredericksen of the Lakeland Ledger. “It also means a lot in terms of recruiting. It’s sort of an endorsement of what this area can do and has done for years in the world of sports.”

The Magic will certainly use the D-League much more frequently with the team located a mere 60 miles away in Lakeland.

Orlando last used the D-League to send Stephen Zimmerman to the Erie BayHawks while the team was on its extended road trip. However a rash of injuries in Friday’s game against the Charlotte Hornets pressed the team to bring Stephen Zimmermanback from Erie sooner than expected.

It would have been a much easier commute for him coming from Lakeland rather than Erie, Pa.

That will be another advantage. For a young player at the end of the bench like Zimmerman or even Mario Hezonja the benefit would be immense. These players can more easily get to a home game in Lakeland when the Magic have an off day and play that day and return to the team for practice the next day in Orlando. This is how teams like the Oklahoma City Thunder use their D-League teams.

The Lakeland Center has long been the host for the FHSAA State Basketball Finals. It has a solidly ingrained basketball fan base in place. The stadium is also fairly manageable — seating just 8,000.

The D-League is not about making money or turning much of a profit. It is about helping develop players and having some ease of access for quick call downs.

Finish Reading Article Here: Orlando Magic select Lakeland to host D-League team

Alan Thicke Died Today Of Sudden Heart Attack

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Alan Thicke Died Today Of Sudden Heart Attack

TMZ – We’re told Alan had a heart attack while he was playing hockey with his 19-year-old son, Carter. He was transported to Providence St. Joseph’s Medical Center around noon today, and pronounced dead there. He was 69.

Law enforcement sources tell us … a company that recovers organs was contacted, so some of Thicke’s organs could be donated.

He’s survived by his 3 sons — Robin, Brennan and Carter … and his wife, Tanya.

Alan played hockey regularly at a rink in Burbank. We’re told he and Carter were on the ice around 11 AM when he started having chest pain, then got nauseous and vomited. The ambulance picked him up around 11:30 and took him to the hospital.

The Canadian born actor was most famous for his role as Jason Seaver, the dad on the ’80s sitcom, “Growing Pains.” Most recently, he was on the Netflix reboot, “Fuller House.”

http://m.tmz.com/#article/2016/12/13/alan-thicke-dead/

Polk County Sheriff’s Office & Southeastern University To Announce School Safety Partnership

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Polk County Sheriff’s Office & Southeastern University To Announce School Safety Partnership

Lakeland, Florida – Southeastern University (SEU) and the Polk County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) are partnering together for the first “Sentinel Program” in the state of Florida, in order to enhance safety for students, faculty, staff and guests of the campus. This one-of-a-kind program enables authorized and comprehensively trained employees of the university to carry concealed firearms on campus for the purpose of rapidly responding to an active assailant on campus.

Tomorrow morning, Wednesday, December 14, 2016 at 10:00 a.m., Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd and Southeastern University President, Dr. Kent Ingle, will announce the new partnership program between the University and the Sheriff’s Office.

Interesting facts that precipitated this partnership.

According to a United States Department of Justice study, between the years of 2000 and 2013 there were 160 “active shooter” incidents in the U.S. “Active shooter” is defined as: “An individual actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill people in a confined and populated area with a firearm.”

Key takeaways of the DOJ study include:
* There were 6.4 incidents per year on average between 2000 and 2006.
* There were 16.4 incidents per year on average between 2007 and 2013.
* 70% of the 160 incidents occurred in either a commerce/business or educational setting.
* 107 of these incidents ended BEFORE police arrived to engage the shooter.
* 64 of the 160 incidents (where an accurate timeline could be established) were over in 5 minutes or less.
* Incidents at educational facilities account for some of the higher incident casualty counts, to include Virginia Tech (32 killed, 17 wounded) and Sandy Hook Elementary School (26 killed, 2 wounded).

Polk County Sheriff’s Office & South Eastern University To Announce School Safety Partnership

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Polk County Sheriff’s Office & South Eastern University To Announce School Safety Partnership

Lakeland, Florida – Southeastern University (SEU) and the Polk County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) are partnering together for the first “Sentinel Program” in the state of Florida, in order to enhance safety for students, faculty, staff and guests of the campus. This one-of-a-kind program enables authorized and comprehensively trained employees of the university to carry concealed firearms on campus for the purpose of rapidly responding to an active assailant on campus.

Tomorrow morning, Wednesday, December 14, 2016 at 10:00 a.m., Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd and Southeastern University President, Dr. Kent Ingle, will announce the new partnership program between the University and the Sheriff’s Office.

Interesting facts that precipitated this partnership.

According to a United States Department of Justice study, between the years of 2000 and 2013 there were 160 “active shooter” incidents in the U.S. “Active shooter” is defined as: “An individual actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill people in a confined and populated area with a firearm.”

Key takeaways of the DOJ study include:
* There were 6.4 incidents per year on average between 2000 and 2006.
* There were 16.4 incidents per year on average between 2007 and 2013.
* 70% of the 160 incidents occurred in either a commerce/business or educational setting.
* 107 of these incidents ended BEFORE police arrived to engage the shooter.
* 64 of the 160 incidents (where an accurate timeline could be established) were over in 5 minutes or less.
* Incidents at educational facilities account for some of the higher incident casualty counts, to include Virginia Tech (32 killed, 17 wounded) and Sandy Hook Elementary School (26 killed, 2 wounded).

Former Bartow Yellow Jacket Coming Up Big For UNC Tar Heels As A Freshman

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Former Bartow Yellow Jacket Coming Up Big For UNC Tar Heels As A Freshman
tony-bradley-jr Coming Up Big For Tar Heels
Tony Bradley Comes Up Big For The Tar Heels

Chapel Hill, North Carolina – Anyone that has ever met Tony Bradley Jr. knew he was going to be special. Affectionately known by family and friends as “Little Tony” he has proven to be “Big Tony” at the University of North Carolina. Bradley blocked a shot in the final seconds to help the Tar Heels rally from 15 down to beat Tennessee 73-71 on Sunday.

At 6′ 10″ and 235 lbs Bradley was outstanding for the Bartow Yellow Jackets and he eventually would be named the 2015-16 Gatorade Florida Boys Basketball Player of the Year.

The former Yellow Jacket was highly sought after when coming out of high school. Approximately 25 top tier college basketball programs wanted Bradley on their team. Bradley was considered a five-star prospect by ESPN and ranks No. 26 overall in the class of 2016. According to scouts he was considered a true low post player with excellent size and frame to build upon. He hustles up and down the court in transition. Eventually he would make the decision to go to UNC.

Bradley has quickly cemented himself into the rotation at UNC as a freshman. Consistently playing 15-18 minutes per game.He has added a few double, doubles (10 or more points and 10 or more rebounds) including one in the win against Tennessee Sunday.

If your looking for a reason to watch college basketball and especially the North Carolina Tarheels, well you now have a Big reason. We will keep you posted on his great progress!

Fort Meade Man Charged With Attempted 1st Degree Murder After Allegedly Trying To Kill His Ex-Girlfriend

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Fort Meade Man Charged With Attempted 1st Degree Murder After Allegedly Trying To Kill His Ex-Girlfriend

Desmond Williams

Fort Meade, Florida – At approximately 6pm on 12/06/2016 a victim drove to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office substation in Fort Meade advising deputies that her ex-boyfriend had tried to kill her. According to the victim her ex-boyfriend opened fire on her vehicle while she was driving down Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. in Fort Meade.

The incident started as an argument between the suspect, Desmond Williams 22 of Fort Meade, and his ex-girlfriend Harleigh Jones. It should be noted according to reports that Jones and Williams had been separated approximately 11 months. The suspect allegedly threatened the victim along with her new boyfriend. Advising the pair “but just know if I SEE YOU DOWN hell and highwaters to pay n hope stew strapped up”. The suspect then allegedly sent a photo of a black handgun to the victim.

Later on that day a witness spotted the suspect as she was driving down the road and the suspect allegedly yelled at her and lifted his shirt showing a handgun. The witness contacted the victim advising what she saw. During the conversation the witness drove back toward where the suspect was located and they exchanged words. During this exchange the call was lost between the witness and the victim. The victim fearing for her friend’s safety drove down MLK Jr. Blvd.  Allegedly while driving down MLK Jr. Blvd. the suspect allegedly stepped out into the road and the victim drove around the suspect. After driving around the suspect and headed away the suspect allegedly pulled a handgun and fired 5 rounds at the victims vehicle. Multiple rounds struck the vehicle. During the firing the victim leaned down in the seat and a round allegedly went through the rear window into the windshield. The round in the assessment of investigators would have struck the victim causing great bodily harm and/or likely death.

The suspect was located and arrested. Post Miranda the victim allegedly confirmed the handgun picture was sent by him, but he didn’t shoot at the victim. He alleged the bullet holes were already in the victims vehicle. Deputies investigating the case were able to retrieve the fired bullets inside the vehicle.

Williams was arrested and charged with Attempted 1st Degree Murder, Shooting Into An Occupied Vehicle, Carry Concealed Weapon/Firearm, Discharge Firearm In Public, Improper Exhibit Firearm and Domestic Violence with Intent To Commit Felony. Williams was give a $73,500 bond. He does not appear to have been released as of this article.

Get Ready!! Santa’s Run For Our Kids Coming to Winter Haven on Dec 17th

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Get Ready!! Santa’s Run For Our Kids Coming to Winter Haven on Dec 17th

Santa’s Run For Our Kids sponsored by the Winter Haven Optimist Club will be coming to Winter Haven on Dec 17th.

The annual Winter Haven Optimist Club 5k,10k,and 1/2 mi kids’ run begins in lovely Central Park ( Ave B and 4th Street) in Winter Haven at 7:30am with the 10K, 8:00am with the 5K, and 9:00am with the Kids’ 1/2 mi. run.

Awards will be presented following the Kids Run.

The race route proceeds along the banks of three beautiful lakes and neighborhoods.

The course is fairly flat with only a smattering of gentle “hills”.

The Kids’ run will be conducted on the Central Park Walking Path.

There will be breakfast munchies, drink and, of course, music.

 

santarun

Suspects Who Fled Simple Traffic Stop Charged With Aggravated Assault On LEO & Possession Of Methamphetamine

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Suspects Who Fled Simple Traffic Stop Charged With Aggravated Assault On LEO & Possession Of Methamphetamine

roberts-and-hidle

Bartow, Florida – Pair of Bartow residents arrested for Aggravated Assault on a Law Enforcement Officer, Fleeing to Elude, Possession of Methamphetamine, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and Resisting Arrest this past weekend. They eventually were apprehended by K9.

On Saturday, December 10, 2016 a Polk County Sheriff’s Deputy attempted to conduct a traffic stop on a green Nissan pick-up truck because the driver was not wearing a seat belt. The deputy attempted to read the license plate of the vehicle, but it was obscured from his vision by a custom bumper and he could not read half the plate. The deputy activated his overhead emergency lights and the vehicle turned down Gandy Rd. in Bartow.  According to reports the truck did not pull over and turned onto Croom Rd. at which time it sped up. The deputy did not pursue and turned off his emergency lights. The deputy radio’d for backup as he knew Croom Rd. was a dead end road. The deputy was preparing to get out of his car when the pickup allegedly turned around and began heading towards him at an accelerated speed. The deputy narrowly moved out of the speeding trucks path just before it hit him. The vehicle allegedly sped down Croom Rd. and then turned down Gandy Rd. before finally turning down Dietz Rd and eventually down a path into the woods.

Additional deputies arrived along with K9 Turbo who apprehended both suspects. A search of the vehicle revealed a used syringe which tested positive for methamphetamine, a corner baggie with contents that tested positive for methamphetamine and a metal spoon.

Both suspects suffered bites from K9 Turbo and were transferred to Bartow Regional Medical Center and eventually to Polk County Jail.

Winter Haven Police Department 5k Benefitting Special Olympics Florida

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Winter Haven Police Department 5k Benefitting Special Olympics Florida

 

Law enforcement has been involved in raising funds for the Special Olympics Florida by participating in annual Torch Runs throughout the state.  This event is a way for the public to become involved and support the mission of Special Olympics Florida.

If you haven’t registered, it’s not too late! The event is March 11.

Registration information here:

http://www.active.com/…/winter-haven-police-department-5k-b…

torchrun

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