U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell has sentenced Edgar Vazquez (36, Fort Myers) to 11 years in federal prison for possessing with the intent to distribute more than 500 grams of cocaine. The court also ordered Vazquez to forfeit a firearm and ammunition that were involved in the offense. VazquezContinue Reading

U.S. District Judge Charlene Edwards Honeywell has sentenced Antonie Latimore (36, Winter Haven) to 10 years and 10 months years in federal prison for conspiring to distribute cocaine base. Latimore had pleaded guilty on March 6, 2020. According to court documents, the FBI received information that Latimore, spelled in someContinue Reading

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida announced the indictment of a two people from Clearwater, Courtney Marie Michaelis and Nicholas Andrew Ham, with the illegal distribution of fentanyl. Michaelis, 37, and Ham, 21, have been charged with distributing fentanyl resulting in serious bodily injury to anContinue Reading

Four Florida men were charged in an indictment unsealed Thursday for their alleged participation in a compound pharmacy kickback scheme. Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez of the Middle District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Cyndy Bruce ofContinue Reading

According to deputies with the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, Robert Alcalde is the man who invaded a Clearwater home in a drug-crazed episode that couldn’t be stopped by officers when they arrived. Alcalde, 31, broke into the home of Heather and Steven Aiosa through the couple’s front window. Steven Aiosa grabbedContinue Reading

Hillsborough County detectives charged a Tampa man for running a human trafficking, prostitution ring at the La Quinta Inn near the Florida State Fairgrounds. Brandon Jackson, 30, has been arrested for holding a 32-year-old woman against her will, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. “Jackson was discovered hiding in a lockedContinue Reading

The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s office, one of the country’s largest sheriff’s departments, is critically short on deputies, creating a major stress for coverage against threats of terrorism, drunk driving, and general public safety. “We do have a shortage, but I can tell you right now we have no shortage of dedicationContinue Reading

After a massive two-day manhunt which included helicopters, K-9s, and dozens of police, the 30-year-old Brandon Goggins finally was apprehended Friday morning. Goggins showed up on Jessica Weightman’s family farm right across from Safety Town, the area where deputies were focusing. He’d spent some of the night in the swamp across the road.Continue Reading

The Pasco County Sheriff’s Office is still searching for Brandon Goggins, described as a “dangerous suspect” will to engage law enforcement with gun fire, according to a witness.Deputies have reopened State Road 52, but the manhunt continues. The Global Dispatch summarized the early details surrounding the case and hunt forContinue Reading

On Wednesday, Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) arrested a man for selling narcotics outside a North Himes Ave laundry mat thanks to information via tip 411. 33-year-old Angel Manuel Sanchez Acosta of Tampa was observed by HCSO deputies retrieving a small bleach bottle and removing a plastic bag containing marijuana. Deputies took the suspect intoContinue Reading