Lakeland, Florida – Lakeland City Commission votes 5-2 to extend the current mask resolution until 5:00 p.m. on September 8, 2020 unless extended by further action of the City Commission.
To view the resolution, visit: https://t.co/9ZvLjh8fN3
Now: Polk Deputies On Scene Of Standoff In Lakeland; Man Barricaded Inside Home
Lakeland, Florida – Polk County Sheriff’s Office deputies are currently on scene of standoff in Lakeland. A man has barricaded himself inside a home.
According to the PCSO public information officer the incident began at 9:45am. The incide is at a home on Ellis Ave. The immediate area has been evacuated and SWAT teams are on scene.
Deputies are in fear for the man’s life and are asking him to surrender peacefully.
Update 1:30pm – Polk County Sheriff’s Office is advising standoff has ended. Barricaded man is in custody. No injuries.
Corrections Officer Arrested For DUI After Found Driving Wrong Way On 17/92 By HCPD
HAINES CITY, FL – A Florida Department of Corrections officer was arrested early Sunday morning
for DUI after driving the wrong way on a major highway.
Amber Reeves, 27, of Winter Haven, was arrested on charges of driving under the influence, possession
of marijuana and drug paraphernalia. She had been traveling eastbound in the westbound lanes of U.S.
Highway 17/92.
Haines City officers stopped Reeves in her Hyundai Sonata about 3:15 a.m. Reeves displayed signs of
impairment and subsequently failed roadside sobriety tests. Ultimately, her blood-alcohol level was
more than twice the legal limit.
Officers located marijuana belonging to Reeves. She was arrested and transported to the Polk County
Jail. Reeves has been employed by the Florida Department of Corrections since May.
“Driving the wrong way down a major road in the middle of the night is a recipe for disaster,” Police
Chief Jim Elensky said. “I’m thankful that our officers were in the right place at the right time to
observe this egregious violation and stop this vehicle before someone was seriously hurt or killed. We
expect law enforcement professionals to uphold the law and serve as model citizens for everyone,
especially the youth. Ms. Reeves will have some time to reflect on her actions from the other side of the
bars.”
Lakeland Linder International Airport receives First Amazon Cargo Flight
Amazon operates a 42 Acre air terminal at Lakeland Lindor International Airport. This Air Freight Hub will support Amazons Lakeland fulfillment center. According to freightwaves.com Amazon invested over $100 million in the new 285,000 Square Foot cargo complex.
The first Amazon flight originated from Sacramento International Airport and landed last Thursday. The package sorting facility at Lakeland Lindor International Airport will receive several cargo flights per day.
“This new location represents Amazon Air’s largest facility in the Southeast and will drive increased investment and commerce in the region and create hundreds of jobs,” said Gov. Ron DeSantis in a statement.
Amazon has been focused on expanding its network of airports the past couple of years to increase delivery speed for its Prime customers, who are promised one- and two-day shipping options
PCSO Investigating A Fatal Crash Which Killed a Pedestrian on Saddle Creek Road
PCSO Investigating a Fatal Crash Which Killed a Pedestrian on Saddle Creek Road
On Wednesday, July 29, 2020, at about 4:52 pm, PCSO Traffic Homicide Unit responded to a vehicle crash on Saddle Creek Road near Tenoroc High School in Lakeland. The crash killed 50 year-old pedestrian Pierre Rogles Louis of Winter Haven.
The vehicle involved was a 2005, green Chevrolet Malibu driven by 62 year-old Emile Jean Baptiste of Winter Haven.
Evidence and witness statements indicate that Louis was driving eastbound on Saddle Creek Road when he stopped to assist a disabled vehicle on the north shoulder of the road, parking his vehicle approximately 100 feet east of it. Louis then exited his vehicle and walked west to check on the other driver.
At the same time, Baptiste was traveling eastbound and it appeared that he failed to see the slowing traffic. Baptiste emergency braked and swerved off the road to avoid a crash, but instead, struck Louis. The Malibu stopped in a water-filled ditch.
Louis was pinned beneath the Malibu, submerged in water and tangled in a barbed wire fence.
Baptiste and passers-by, searched for Louis but were unable to locate him beneath the Malibu. PCSO along with Polk County Fire Rescue pulled the Malibu out of the ditch and located Louis, deceased.
Baptiste was evaluated by a several DUI trained deputies and displayed no signs of impairment.
Saddle Creek Road was closed for about two and a half hours, during the investigation, which remains on-going.
Local Author Ponders “What Is A Dream” In New Children’s Book
Local Author Ponders “What Is A Dream” In New Children’s Book
by James Coulter
I wonder what I’ll dream tonight?
What places will I go?
I guess until I close my eyes
I’ll never really know.
Little Ari ponders this very query while preparing for bed. She soon hears a voice ask her, “What is a dream?”
She looks to see that it’s none other than her dog, Pepper, talking to her. At first, she’s surprised to hear her pet talking to her; but upon realizing that Pepper is her friend, she quickly calms down and accepts her dream-like reality.
Together they go on an epic journey to find the answer to their question. Through the five senses, they learn how a dream looks, sounds, feels, and also what a dream smells and tastes like. Little Ari even reveals a magic formula to create your own dream.
“What is a Dream?” is the second book in the children’s book series, “Let’s Go Dreaming”, written by Lakeland author Shanita Allen. Last year, she published her first book in the series, “Sleep, Tiny Dreamer”, a lullaby-ish book that encourages children to think about the things they will see and do in their dreams as they go to bed.
Allen works as a Behavior Analyst. She has more than 17 years of experience serving individuals with developmental disabilities in the Hillsborough County area. As someone who loves to read and write, she wanted to create her own children’s book series to put the skills she learned as a Behavioral Analyst into practice.
“My driving inspiration behind all of my books is to encourage young minds to believe in themselves, to know that they can have anything they set their minds to as long as they have the confidence and courage,” Allen said.
Her journey towards becoming a children’s book author started nearly two years ago. She wrote the initial rough drafts of the first nine books in her series in August 2018. She even shared her preliminary work with fellow writers at a local writer’s group, Writer’s For All Seasons, led by local author and agent Evelyn Rainey.
Since her first book, “Sleep Tiny Dreamer”, was published in September 2019, Allen has experienced tremendous success as an up-and-coming author. Her Facebook page has received more than one thousand likes, and the Amazon reviews for her first book have consistently received five-star ratings.
One of the reviewers even visited the skit that she performed for several children at the New River Library in Pasco County last year to promote her book. The reviewer mentioned how much his eleven grandchildren loved hearing the story read to them by him.
“This young Author should be very proud,” he wrote. “She’s touching so many lives of all ages, reminding some of us, To Dream again!”
Allen also had the honor of being featured in a cover article in The Ledger, receiving a thank you letter from the British royal family, and even receiving a personalized letter from the Honorable Sheriff Grady Judd.
She was scheduled to have her first book signing at Barnes & Noble earlier this year in April, but that event, like many other events, were postponed due to the current COVID-19 crisis. Allen had the opportunity to visit countless schools and classrooms to speak to children about her book, yet recent events have forced her to do most of her promotional work virtually.
“My expectations are eventually to get back to somewhat of a normalcy, so that I can physically connect with my audience,” she said. “I love being able to go into a classroom, and read to the children and have that individualized attention I was giving each and every one of them when I read them my story and ask about their thoughts and input and what their dreams were.”
Allen not only hopes to eventually return to visiting schools, libraries, and book stores for books readings and other events, but she also hopes that children will be able to safely leave home to attend these events.
“I want to give them hope that everything is going to be okay, things will return to normal at some point, they just have to be patient and keep thinking positive,” she said.
Moreover, she hopes that children will be just as inspired reading her books as she was writing them. She wanted to share an inspiring message for young readers to dream big.
“Nothing is beyond your reach,” she said. “Doesn’t matter where you came from, doesn’t matter how much money you have, doesn’t matter your race or religion, all that matters is that you believe in yourself and you keep striving, you don’t take no for an answer.”
To learn more about “Let’s Go Dreaming”, visit her website at: https://www.letsgodreaming.com
Her two books are available for purchase on Amazon: amazon.com/author/shanitaallen
Board of County Commissioner Candidate Arrested
On July 29, 2020, PCSO detectives arrested 56 year-old Martin William Grenfell, candidate for the office of Polk County Commissioner, District 1.
On February 22, 2013, Grenfell was convicted in federal court of felony Trafficking in Counterfeit Labels and received three years’ probation.
On November, 18, 2012, Grenfell entered into a plea agreement for the above charge. According to the affidavit, “On page 14 of [Grenfell’s signed] plea agreement, the following is written, ‘The defendant also understands that defendant will be adjudicated guilty of the offenses to which defendant has pleaded and, if any of such offenses are felonies, may thereby be deprived of certain rights, such as the right to vote, to hold public office, to serve on a jury, or to have possession of firearms.’”
According to the affidavit, “Grenfell received a Sentencing Memorandum in Support of a Reasonable Probationary Sentence. On page four (4) the following is written, ‘Mr. Grenfell pled guilty to a non-violent felony. As a result, he will lose his right to vote, run for office, possess a firearm, and probably most importantly to him, the opportunity to volunteer in his children’s school and after school activities.’”
The affidavit continues, “Under Article 6, Section 4, of the Florida Constitution, it is written, ‘No person convicted of a felony, or adjudicated in this or any other state to be mentally incompetent, shall be qualified to vote or hold office until restoration of civil rights or removal of disability. Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, any disqualification from voting arising from a felony conviction shall terminate and voting rights shall be restored upon completion of all terms of sentence including parole or probation.’ The Florida Constitution does not include restoring the ability to run for office upon the completion of all terms of a sentence, only voting rights.”
According to the affidavit, Grenfell “completed the Candidate Oath form in its entirety on 6/12/2020. On the Candidate Oath form, it states, ‘I, (Name) am a candidate for the office of (Office) (District #), (Circuit #), (Group or Seat #); I am a qualified elector of ____ County, Florida; I am a qualified under the Constitution and the Laws of Florida to hold the office to which I desire to be nominated or elected.’ To which Martin printed his name “Martin Grenfell”, the office “Polk County Commission”, the district “1”, and the County “Polk”, and signed the bottom of the form in the “Signature of Candidate” portion.”
The Candidate Oath form was then notarized. By signing the Oath, Grenfell attested that he is qualified to hold office under the Constitution and the Laws of Florida which includes the prohibition against holding an elected office by a convicted felon.
“During the election process it is fundamental that individuals comply with the rules and laws that are in place to ensure a fair and honest election.” – Grady Judd, Sheriff
Grenfell was arrested and charged with FSS 104.011, False Swearing with Regard to Voting (F-3).
Did you know Cybercrime’s are more profitable than illegal drug trafficking worldwide?
In 2019 it has been estimated that Cyber related crimes costs businesses over $2 Trillion dollars globally. It is really hard to pinpoint an exact cost on Cyber Crimes committed annually because only 10-12% of Cyber Crimes are reported to authorities. Since Cyber Crimes are so profitable it is understandable why a new attack is launched about every 39 seconds.
In fact, approximately 85 percent of small business owners believe their company is safe from hackers, viruses, malware or a data breach. This disconnect is largely due to the widespread belief that small businesses are unlikely targets for Cyber-Attacks. In reality, Cyber Criminals are simply looking for an easy target with the path of least resistance. Symantec’s study found that 40 percent of attacks are against organizations with fewer than 500 employees.
The first step to securing your environment is to have a clear understanding of where you stand from a Cyber Security prospective.
Business Leaders should have a risk assessment of their environment conducted to help them determine what the current Cyber Security posture of their organization is. Having a Cyber Security Assessment completed will provide action driven data to the business that will allow them to develop a strategy to address high value assets that are at risks in order to take the appropriate steps to mitigate or reduce exposure.
In fact with a Cyber Security Assessment you will learn there are simple things you can do to reduce Cyber Security risks. For example, Ensuring Firewall’s, Operating System Software, and Endpoint Protection is installed and up to date on all systems. By simply ensuring all the doors are locked or at least secure your organization can deter most lower level Cyber Attacks.
Second, stay Intune with current Cyber Threats. Cyber Criminal are always looking for new exploits. Cyber Criminals often use Darknet Forums to share new attack vectors with each other. Cyber Attackers use peers to help perfect their craft before exposing their new method of attack to the real world. Once a new exploit is successfully launched in the real world other Cyber Criminal act quickly take advantage of the new exploit before it is discovered and blocked. Once the trend becomes common knowledge, organizations learn how it works and take the appropriate mitigation steps to address the exploit or vulnerability.
Most of all implementing some type of SIEM in your environment will help your organization be proactive at detecting potential Cyber Security threats. When a SIEM detects a potential area of compromise the AI built into the SIEM can send an alert to your IT staff or Outsourced Security Operations Center for further review. By proactively investigating a potential Cyber Security event you can reduce the overall impact and loss should the event turn into a Cyber Security Incident.
At the end of the day many Organization’s typically don’t have the in house resources or budget to employ a Cyber Security Team to protect their business. Many IT staff are simply trying to keep up and put out day to day operational fires. Local IT staff simply do not have enough time in the day to investigate potential Cyber Security Threats.
Whether you’re looking to secure Cyber Security Insurance or simply looking to ensure your environment is secure from Cyber Criminals I can help you custom tailor a solution to accomplish your business goals.
For a free consultation to discuss your organizations needs please feel free to reach out at 863-734-8060 or email [email protected]
Kip Kirchberg is an International Cyber Security Expert who has experience building Cyber Security Teams and working with Multiple Fortune 500 organizations. Experience includes but is not limited to Building SIEM platforms, Endpoint Security, 3rd Party Remote Access, Industrial Control System’s NextGen Firewall’s, Helping Organizations Identify Cyber Security Risks, Generating Reports that lead to actionable data, Build and maintain Incident Response Team’s, Draft and Adopt Corporate Cyber Security Governance, Internal and External Pen Testing, plus much more….
Tire Recycling Collection Event Set for Saturday, August 8, 2020 in Wahneta
Tire Recycling Collection Event Set for Saturday, August 8, 2020 in Wahneta
Keep Polk County Beautiful, Inc. in partnership with the support of Polk County Board of County Commissioners and Advanced Disposal Services is hosting a special Summer Tire Recycling Collection Event at Lake Gwyn Park- 423 4th Street East, Wahneta on Saturday, August 8th from 8am- noon.
Polk County residents and agricultural land owners may dispose of up to 24 tires per vehicle. No Tractor or Off-Road Tires will be accepted. Legal hauling limits will be strictly enforced. Absolutely NO Commercial or Automotive Businesses will be allowed. This will be strictly enforced.
Social Distancing requirements will be in effect, please plan to unload your tires in the designated areas at this event. For questions, call Keep Polk County Beautiful, (863) 875-8911.
It is a violation of Florida Administrative Code Rules to transport more than 24 Waste Tires over public highways without a permit. Violation of this rule would constitute a 1st degree criminal misdemeanor and be punishable by a fine of not more than $10,000 and/or by 6 months in jail for further information please regarding the handling of waste tires please visit the DEP website http://www.dep.state.fl.us/ .
Bartow Man On Federal Probation For Trafficking in Methamphetamine Arrested For DUI Manslaughter And Child Neglect
The Polk County Sheriff’s Office Traffic Homicide Unit responded to a two-vehicle crash the evening of Tuesday, July 28, 2020 in Winter Haven. The crash killed 35 year-old Michael Sweet of Winter Haven who was driving a 1999, blue Chevrolet Ventura Van, Sweet’s van was struck head-on in his lane by a truck driven by a drug dealer on federal probation.
The at-fault vehicle was a 2019, black Chevrolet Silverado Pick-up truck driven by 36 year-old George Pizano, Jr. of Bartow. A 10 year-old child was a passenger in the vehicle. Neither Pizano nor the child were wearing seatbelts. Neither suffered serious injuries.
According to the preliminary investigation, at approximately 7:28 pm, Sweet was traveling northbound on 42nd Street Northwest when Pizano’s Chevrolet Silverado, traveling southbound, crossed the double center line hitting the Chevrolet Ventura head on. Sweet’s van spun and overturned causing the roof to collapse. He was declared deceased on-scene.
Video of the crash was obtained which supports the detectives’ initial findings.
During the investigation, detectives spoke with Pizano, who smelled of marijuana, and observed Pizano demonstrating actions indicating impairment as a factor in the crash. According to the affidavit, those indications “include the clear and obvious odor of cannabis coming from his person and breath, [Pizano] having issues with balance as he was walking, swaying while he was standing, bloodshot and watery eyes, attempting to cover his mouth with his hand in what appeared to be an attempt to hide his mouth or redirect his breath, to show signs of confusion when recalling the events of the crash and drowsiness. This confusion included recalling what direction he was coming from, where he was going, and what happened during the crash. These are all indications of possible impairment.” A blood sample was obtained to confirm Pizano’s impairment.
“Some people just don’t learn, and George Pizano is one such person. He has been on federal probation less than a year and is right back to his old tricks. This is one more example of a so-called “low-level, non-violent” drug related to a fatal and heartbreaking conclusion. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and loved ones of Michael Sweet.” – Grady Judd, Sheriff
Pizano was arrested and charged with DUI Manslaughter (F-2), DUI with Property Damage (M-1), and Child Neglect (F-3). Pizano’s criminal history includes 19 felonies and 17 misdemeanors. Pizano is also on Federal Probation for drug trafficking. Pizano, the ringleader of a large-scale drug trafficking organization, was federally charged and sentenced on March 30, 2011, to 20 years in federal prison, followed by 10 years of probation. Pizano did not serve his full 20 years, instead he was early released to probation on August 16, 2019.