LAKELAND, FL (January 26, 2024) – On Friday, January 26, 2024, at approximately 7:03 a.m., officers responded to a traffic crash involving a silver Nissan SUV and a blue Kawasaki motorcycle at the intersection of West Memorial Boulevard and Crutchfield Road. Just before the crash, the Nissan was traveling east on West Memorial Boulevard and was attempting to make a left turn onto Crutchfield Road. The motorcycle was traveling westbound on West Memorial Boulevard as the Nissan entered the westbound lanes to turn left. The motorcycle then impacted the passenger’s side of the Nissan.
The Lakeland Police Department Patrol Units, Polk County Fire Rescue, and the Lakeland Fire Department all arrived on the scene to begin life-saving measures. The motorcyclist was pronounced deceased by medical personnel at the scene. The front passenger of the Nissan was transported to Lakeland Regional Health with serious bodily injuries. The driver of the Nissan received minor injuries but was not transported.
The roadway was shut down for approximately three hours to process the scene for the ongoing investigation.
Anyone with information regarding the crash is asked to contact Traffic Crash Investigator Officer Camilo Almeida at camilo.almeida@lakelandgov.net.
The PCSO Traffic Homicide Unit is investigating a crash that occurred around 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday, January 24, 2024, in unincorporated Lakeland, which resulted in the death of an unknown adult bicyclist.
The bicyclist was a male who appeared to be in his 50s. He was crossing US 98 from east to west in the crosswalk at the intersection with Autumnwood Grove Blvd on a bicycle, against the red light. A 2023 Dodge Ram 3500 pickup truck pulling a utility trailer being driven by 49-year-old Shirity Saunders of Lake Worth was heading south on US 98 with a green light. The bicycle struck the rear driver’s side of the truck as it crossed the intersection, and then the bike was hit by the front corner of the trailer. The man was propelled into the trailer. He was transported to Lakeland Regional Health Medical Center with critical injuries. He was not wearing a helmet.
He succumbed to his injuries overnight in the hospital. We are still trying to positively identify him.
Rick Runion has loved jazz ever since he was little. He played in band through college and even in the US Navy in the military band for four years. Since he moved to Florida, he has been playing gigs on the weekends.
Last weekend, Runion had the opportunity to play saxophone at the Third Annual Swan City Jazz Fest, hosted at the Kathleen High School Auditorium. He had previously played at the annual event with his band, but decided to play solo this year.
“I love the fact that I get to communicate with other people my love of jazz,” he said. I think the fact that we had to move indoors is great. I am disappointed we had to move our event indoors. But that is okay. We have a good location. This is an awesome place.”
For the past three years, the Swan City Jazz Festival has drawn attendees together for a weekend of hot jazz tunes. This year’s event included performances by headline artists Julian Vaughn and Lannie Battistini. Other performances were hosted by Olyvya Wells, Just The 2 Of Us, Dimas Sanchez, Philip “Jazz Dad” Thomas, Shawn Brown, and the Valerie Gillispie Ensemble.
Originally, this year’s jazz festival was going to be hosted at its regular venue at Munn Park in Downtown Lakeland. However, due to cold weather, the event had to be moved indoors to the auditorium at Kathleen High School. Despite the sudden change of location, the turnout proved good, especially due to the event’s reputation for hosting top-tier talent.
“The artists are top tier, and the crowd loves top tier,” said Lisa Kirk, event coordinator. “There are three things that bring people of diverse backgrounds together: great music, great people, and great sports. I love seeing people sway to the beat.”
The Polk County Sheriff’s Office Traffic Homicide Unit is investigating a traffic crash involving a Hyundai Tucson and a motorcycle that occurred around 6:45 p.m. last evening, Tuesday, January 23, 2024, in unincorporated Lakeland, which resulted in the death of the motorcyclist.
According to the investigation so far, 31-year-old Xinia Spencer was returning home to the Carlton Arms Apartment Complex in south Lakeland with her two children in her Hyundai SUV. As she entered the eastbound turn lane going into the complex, 35-year-old Lawrence Schreiber, who was heading west on Shepherd Road on his red Harley Davidson motorcycle, crashed into the SUV. Evidence and witness statements indicate that the traffic light for westbound traffic was yellow as Schreiber traveled down Shepherd, and then turned red prior to Schreiber entering the intersection.
Neither Spencer nor her passengers were injured. Schreiber was declared deceased at the scene.
Osceola County, FL – On January 21, 2024, at approximately 1:00 am, the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office Patrol and Violent Crimes Unit responded to 1131 Doncaster Court, Kissimmee, Osceola County, Florida, in reference to a shooting.
When deputies and detectives arrived on the scene, Steven Jesus Perez, (D.O.B 8/7/1992), was found on the ground with gunshot wounds and was pronounced deceased.
Maximo Mercado Jr D.O.B 09/12/1982 and Liam Nicholson D.O.B 04/03/1995 were identified as shooters in this incident.
On January 22, 2024, Mercado Jr and Liam Nicholson were arrested by the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office Violent Crimes Unit for the homicide of Steven Jesus Perez and were booked into the Osceola County Jail. This was an isolated incident which is still under investigation.
The Polk County Sheriff’s Office Traffic Homicide Unit is investigating a traffic crash in unincorporated Winter Haven this morning that resulted in the tragic death of a 15-year-old male Auburndale High School student.
Preliminary information follows:
Around 5:50 a.m. this morning, Tuesday, January 23, 2024, the PCSO ECC received 911 calls from the area of 34th Street NW and Avenue S NW regarding a Dodge Durango that had collided with a teen riding a scooter.
The teen, identified as Yeriel Gonzalez of Winter Haven, was declared deceased at the scene. He was operating a small black-and-white electric scooter (the kind you stand on, like a Razor) near the center of the southbound lane of 34th St, heading to a friend’s house. The 2016 gray Dodge Durango being driven by 29-year-old John Barrett III of Winter Haven was heading northbound on 34th Street; Barrett was on his way to work.
The Durango was behind another vehicle as it approached the intersection with Avenue S NW. Barrett told deputies he swerved to avoid some dogs that ran into the roadway, and entered into the southbound lane, and into the path of Gonzalez, who struck the right front of the SUV.
A photo from the scene is in the link below. The investigation is ongoing. Barrett was not injured.
PCSO Chaplains responded to the scene and met with the boy’s family, and the PCSO Safe Schools Division is working with Polk County Public Schools to provide assistance to the Auburndale High School faculty, staff, and students during this difficult time. Yeriel’s family is in our prayers.
Chef Eimi of InnerG Cafe serves a lot of great tastes, from cheeseburger eggrolls to Haitian-style mac-and-cheese. Most interesting of all? It’s all completely vegan!
Chef Eimi had a chance to showcase her plant-based food menu at the annual Taste of Davenport last Saturday. She was one of nearly 30 vendors to attend to serve the great tastes of the Davenport area.
“The turnout is amazing,” she said. “It is an amazing crowd. People are stopping by the table and tasting the food. They are loving it. So we are excited. I love the energy. It is high vibrational energy, and the crowd is just lit.”
From barbecue and burgers to Mexican and Italian, restaurants and eateries from across Davenport and the surrounding area showcased their menu items at Taste of Davenport at the Tom Fellows Community Center.
Seb’s Kitchen, a private catering company, served unique fusion items like chimichurri chicken, cheesy potato mash, and apple barbecue meatballs. For the past five years, they have catered to various events, so attending this year’s event was a no-brainer, explained executive chef Sebastian Navarez.
“Everybody seems to be loving the food,” he said. “We are giving away a good number of business cards. We are giving away food to the community. I love that everyone else is enjoying the food.”
Heather Faulkner, the head chef of Cooters n Smoke, a local barbecue team that attends barbecue competitions and serves their barbecue at the Old Davenport Hotel, served her famous mouth-watering turkey sliders.
“If you want some of the best juiciest and moist the most tender turkey you have ever had in your life, come on down to Cooters on Smoke,” she boasted. As for Taste of Davenport, she said: “I think it turned out great. I think they did a great job and everybody is happy and they like what they are getting.”
Kelly Callihan, Davenport City Manager, has been overseeing events like this for 35 years. He was quite impressed by this year’s turnout. In fact, he claimed that even more people would have attended this year, so he’s planning on seeking a larger venue for next year.
“It is a great event. We always have a great turnout for it,” he said. “We had close to 500. We could easily do 600. I love seeing all the people come out and have a great time and getting their bellies full.”
The Polk County Sheriff’s Office issued a warrant for first degree murder for 26-year-old Enrique Martinez, 5’6″ tall, 146 lbs, in November 2023 for the murder of an adult Hispanic male in a homeless camp on November 8, 2023.
Martinez’s photo and information were posted on the PCSO website, PCSO Facebook page, and Heartland Crime Stoppers Facebook page on November 9, 2023. They were posted again on November 30, 2023. His photo is also included in the link below.
Martinez is now a suspect in the death of 20-year-old Sierra Hernandez, who was reported missing to PCSO by her mother on January 14, 2024, but is believed to have been killed days prior. The cash reward for information leading to his arrest has been increased from $5,000 to $10,000.
Martinez has brown eyes and black hair. He was most recently seen in the Inwood area of Winter Haven.
He has a tattoo on his left wrist that says “W7” and one on the left side of his neck that says “Natalia.” His nickname is KiKi (pronounced Key-Kay).
Martinez has a very lengthy and violent criminal history dating back to 2011, with 13 felonies and 15 misdemeanors. He spent 5 years in state prison for aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and battery domestic violence – he was released in November 2022. He was most recently arrested for battery domestic violence and resisting arrest in April 2023, and was released on bond.
If you have information on his whereabouts please call PCSO immediately by dialing 911.
If you wish to remain anonymous and receive a $10,000 CASH REWARD, contact Heartland Crime Stoppers in one of four ways:
**CALL 1-888-400-TIPS (8477) **DIAL **TIPS from your cell phone **VISIT the website www.heartlandcrimestoppers.com and click on “Submit A Tip,” **DOWNLOAD the free “P3tips” app on your smartphone or tablet.
Sheriff Grady Judd will brief the media at 5:00 p.m. this afternoon, Monday, January 22, 2024, at the PCSO Sheriff’s Operations Center in Winter Haven, with an update in the missing person investigation of Sierra Hernandez. PCSO detectives are seeking the public’s help in locating a suspect who already has a warrant for first degree murder in a November 2023 homicide, and is now a suspect in the Sierra Hernandez investigation. There is a $10,000 reward for information leading to the suspect’s arrest through Heartland Crime Stoppers.
More information will be released at the 5:00 p.m.briefing.
Who lives in a pineapple under the sea? SpongeBob SquarePants! And who voices that happy-go-lucky sponge? Tom Kenny. The famous cartoon sponge’s voice actor made a special guest appearance at this year’s Central Florida Comic Con (CFCC), hosted last weekend at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland.
Kenny has voiced many other cartoon characters. Aside from SpongeBob, his favorite performance was as Simon, a character from Adventure Time who was cursed to become the series’ villain Ice King.
“He started as this standard burlesque-kind of villain; and then through Fionna and Cake, which dropped this past year, they made him a much more intense, internally sad character,” Kenny said. “So, that is something a little different to take him in a different direction.”
CFCC 2024 was the first time in a long time Kenny visited Florida. He loved the convention, especially since its size and crowd were just right for the famous voice actor.
“I am having a great time,” he said. “This is the perfect-sized con for me. The really huge ones? They get a little bit too crazy. They get way too out of hand. They’re kind of sprawling. And so, I like a nice, solid, medium-to-large con like this that is not gigantic.”
Kenny was one of the many celebrities who appeared at CFCC 2024 in Lakeland. The annual fan convention is hosted by Ben Penrod, a local comic book fan who has experience running similar conventions since 2011.
This year’s convention featured hundreds of vendors selling merchandise related to comic books, video games, movies, and other geek-related media. It also hosted various panels and a cosplay costume contest. Attendees were encouraged to dress as their favorite characters from their favorite media.
Also attending this year’s convention were several dozen celebrities including Tom Kenny. Other notable guests included Casper Van Dien, an actor from movies like Starship Troopers, and A.J. Francise, otherwise known as the wrestler Top Dolla.
Two other notable voice actors included Dan Green and Eric Stuart, who voiced the main characters Yami Yugi and Seto Kaiba from the Yu-Gi-Oh! anime. Though both actors have performed other roles in other media, their roles in Yu-Gi-Oh! prove to be their most beloved.
“I like Kaiba because of the dimensions of his character,” Stuart said. “It is an honor that people actually enjoyed my work and connected with those characters. I have been doing this for a very long time. Most of the time, we work in a booth by ourselves. So, it is really nice to see fans who enjoy our work.”
“The characters I owe the most to are Yami and Yugi because if I had not done that show [Yu-Gi-Oh!], I would not have met the woman who became my wife and we wouldn’t have the kids that we have today,” Green said. “I am very fortunate to have participated in things that many people have loved as much as they do. And I couldn’t be more stunned that something [that was made] 20 years ago is still meaningful to people today.”
Stuart and Green enjoyed being able to attend CFCC 2024. Both of them appreciated being able to meet with adoring fans of their work and being able to participate in such a well-organized event.
“I learned a little bit about Lakeland,” Stuart said. “I didn’t realize there was a fun town like this. You guys are a real hidden little gem.”
“I am having a wonderful time,” Green said. “The people are wonderful. Everybody is friendly. So, it is wonderful getting to know the people here.”
Anyone who grew up watching Warner Bos. animated series like Tiny Toon Adventures, Animaniacs, and Pinky and the Brain would have been excited to meet two other guests: Tom Ruegger, the shows’ creator, and Paul Rugg, who worked as a writer and voice actor on those shows, as well as the creator Freakazoid and the voice actor of its titular character.
When asked which he preferred, being a voice actor or a creator, Rugg replied that the answer was two-fold, as each job had its own unique perks.
“To get the job done quickly, it is being a voice actor,” he said. “You can just go in, you can wear your pajamas, and then you’re done. But what’s more satisfying is creating the show, working on all your lines, and coming up with all the ideas. So that is what I would say [is best].”
And when asked how he felt about being a part of the childhood of many millennials, he replied that he appreciated, “[being] beloved by so many fans. It makes me so very happy. A lot of people come up and say ‘I’m introducing my kid to this weirdness.’ So it is awesome.”
Ruegger, meanwhile, appreciated being able to attend the convention. He would have loved it even more if it were three days rather than just two.
“It has been a great experience,” he said. “I have been here for both days. The crowd is a beautiful group of people, and they come from all over Florida. So we had a great time.”
Currently, Rugger has worked on a documentary about the art director of the 1973 horror film, The Exorcist. As for being a creator of many popular animated television shows in the 1990s, he appreciated how his work was appreciated even to this day.
“I am very gratified that the shows have meant a great deal to a great number of people, and that the shows continue to reverberate in their memories and their lives,” he said. “It is a truly positive experience to meet with them and to find that these shows have had a really nice impact on their lives.”
