The City of Toronto, Canada reported 420 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, putting Canada’s largest city, a population of 6,197,000 at 36,821 total cases since the pandemic started. The recent increase in cases has prompted the Province of Ontario Friday to announce further measures in Toronto and Peel Region toContinue Reading
In Ocala, Florida, 27-year-old Tommy Lee Holt was sentenced to four years and seven months in federal prison for possession of an unregistered destructive device today. According to the plea agreement, on November 5, 2019, Holt manufactured eight “Molotov cocktails” using glass bottles filled with gasoline. All qualified as destructiveContinue Reading
Michigan health officials announced this week a new emergency order that enacts a three-week pause targeting indoor social gatherings and other group activities in an effort to curb rapidly rising COVID-19 infection rates. Under this order, indoor residential gatherings are limited to two households at any one time. However, MDHHS stronglyContinue Reading
The Florida Department of Health in Collier County (DOH-Collier) is reporting a total of four human cases of West Nile virus (WNV) that have been confirmed. There is a heightened concern additional residents will become ill. This brings the total WNV cases to 40 in the state–Miami-Dade County (26), PalmContinue Reading
A Brandon man arrested during a recent Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office online chat operation is now facing additional charges after detectives discovered he was engaging in sex with a minor he met online. Flor-Adam Brandon Cruz, 24, was one of 22 men arrested during Operation Social Bust. Hillsborough County Sheriff’s OfficeContinue Reading
Health officials in the United States and Canada both announced the end of the Salmonella outbreak linked to peaches this week. In the US, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said Friday it appears the outbreak is over after a total of 101 people infected with the outbreakContinue Reading
Two west coast Florida cities have been rated to be in the top 10 fastest-growing cities in America in 2020, according to a recent WalletHub report. Fort Myers, FL was ranked number one in the country, while Town ‘n’ Country, FL, in the Tampa Bay area was ranked number seven.Continue Reading
The Florida Department of Health (DOH) reported four additional locally acquired dengue fever cases this past week in Monroe and Miami-Dade Counties, bringing the state total to 70 in 2020. The Monroe County cases were identified through retrospective case finding efforts to better characterize activity early in the outbreak. TwoContinue Reading
The Libertarian Party announced recently that the campaign of Dr. Jo Jorgensen for president and Jeremy “Spike” Cohen for vice president has met all states’ ballot-access requirements, putting the ticket officially on the ballot in all 50 states plus the District of Columbia. This marks the fifth time the LibertarianContinue Reading
This week, Ernest Gonzalez (68, Tampa), the president and owner of Health and Pain Center (HPC), a pain management clinic, was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison and Rosa Colon (30, Tampa) to 24 months in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute and dispense controlled substances for no legitimateContinue Reading
The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) has positively identified the presence of the horntail snail (Macrochlamys indica) in Miami-Dade County. The snail was discovered by a gastropod enthusiast in Coconut Grove who sent the unusual snail to the University of Florida (UF) for identification. This is the first time this snailContinue Reading
A father and son duo has been charged with enticement and coercion of a minor traveling out of the country to engage in illicit sexual conduct, and transporting a minor into the country to engage in sexual activity. Trinity residents, 26-year-old Jordan Jysae Pulido (charged with the above) and hisContinue Reading
On Friday, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis announced that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has approved Individual Assistance for Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton and Bay counties following the impact of Hurricane Sally. With this announcement, families impacted by Hurricane Sally now have access to critical FEMA programs, including housing assistance,Continue Reading
The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) announced today the arrest of 45-year-old Eugenio Rodriguez-Colina for the arson of the Incarnation Catholic Church. Video obtained from the church was used to identify the suspect who set fire to multiple pews on September 18. Four days later, on September 22, surveillance videoContinue Reading
Tampa International Airport (TIA) announced this week the launch of the country’s first airport testing pilot that will offer two types of FDA-approved COVID-19 tests for all departing and arriving passengers. The testing site, located inside the Main Terminal near the Airside F shuttle, will offer both the rapid antigenContinue Reading
Last week, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis announced new legislation to stop violent assemblies and protect law enforcement. The proposed legislation, the “Combatting Violence, Disorder and Looting and Law Enforcement Protection Act,” creates new criminal offenses and increases penalties for those who target law enforcement and participate in violent or disorderly assemblies. “Our rightContinue Reading
Polk County Sheriff’s Fraud detectives arrested 32-year-old Amanda Brown of Frostproof and charged her with five counts criminal use of personal ID (F2), one count grand theft (F3), one count misrepresentation of proceeds (F3), one count fraud (F3), for fraudulently misrepresenting three homicide victims’ families and collecting over $11,000 from GoFundMe onContinue Reading
The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) announced today that they will cautiously resume offering in-person visitation to families and friends of inmates beginning in October. Effective Monday, October 5, 2020, HCSO will resume non-contact visitations at the Falkenburg Road Jail Video Visitation Center. Along with allowing loved ones of inmatesContinue Reading
Today, at The Birchwood hotel in St. Petersburg, Governor Ron DeSantis announced that the state will move to Phase 3 of his “Safe. Smart. Step-by-Step. Plan” for Re-Opening Florida, including allowing restaurants to operate at full capacity, effective immediately. There will no longer be operational limitations enforced by the State ofContinue Reading
The U.S. Department of Justice today identified the following three jurisdictions that have permitted violence and destruction of property to persist and have refused to undertake reasonable measures to counteract criminal activities: New York City; Portland, Oregon; and Seattle, Washington. The Department of Justice is continuing to work to identifyContinue Reading
Sally, formerly Tropical Depression 19, strengthened to a tropical storm at 2 p.m. EDT on Saturday afternoon. As of 5 a.m. EDT Sunday, the storm was centered 115 miles west of Port Charlotte, Florida, and moving west-northwestward at 13 mph. Maximum sustained winds were 50 mph. AccuWeather meteorologists continue toContinue Reading
