News Cast for January 23rd:
The Okeechobee Utility Authority Board honored retiring attorney Tom Conely after nearly 30 years of service.
He said he’d like to see more intergovernmental cooperation in Okeechobee, especially when it comes to future growth and development.
“I don’t think the public realizes how important this board is and how far reaching the decisions this board makes goes.”
He said there still is a little friction amongst the local governments. He said the OUA must be included in discussions on every development that is proposed.
The S-65D Boat Lock on the Kissimmee River in Okeechobee County will temporarily close next week for a routine inspection.
The boat lock will close at 7:00 a.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2025, and will remain closed until 7:00 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 31, 2025. Boaters will not be able to lock through the structure and should make alternate plans.
To get the latest information on navigation through SFWMD structures and waterways, visit SFWMD.gov/Navigation and follow SFWMD on Facebook and X.
Anglers and boaters may also access local waterways through other public boat ramps. Visit FWC Boat Ramp Finder to find one near you.
Florida Man Sentenced to Life in Prison for Sex Trafficking Nearly a Dozen Women and Girls
Wednesday, January 22, 2025
Share
For Immediate Release
Office of Public Affairs
Shannima Yuantrell Session, also known as Shalamar, 47, of Lake Placid, Florida, was sentenced today to life in prison for trafficking nearly a dozen women and girls. Previously, a jury in the Southern District of Florida found him guilty of 10 counts of sex trafficking by force, fraud or coercion and three counts of sex trafficking of a minor. The court has set a restitution hearing date of April 17.
“Protecting victims of human trafficking and child exploitation is a top priority for the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Michael S. Davis for the Southern District of Florida. “We are committed to aggressively combating these exploitative crimes that victimize the most vulnerable people in our society. Human beings are not commodities to be bought and sold, but rather demand our united protection. Our dedicated team of prosecutors, victim witness coordinators, and support personnel will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to combat human trafficking and child exploitation to bring these offenders to justice.”
“This substantial sentence is indicative of the egregious sexual exploitation committed by Shannima Yuantrell Session on numerous juveniles and women in Highlands County, Florida,” said Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI Miami Field Office. “It is a testament to the cooperation and commitment of several law enforcement agencies including the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida and the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. We will continue working with these and other partners to dismantle human trafficking networks that operate in the shadows and brutalize their victims.”
The evidence presented at the nine-day trial in September 2024 demonstrated that Session compelled victims to commit commercial sex acts between July 2011 and July 2013 as well as between February 2016 and February 2019. Session made promises of legitimate work and housing assistance to women and girls struggling with unstable living accommodations, substance abuse and neglect or who otherwise led unstable lives. Session’s promises were often false and empty, designed to provide him with the
opportunity to learn about a victim’s vulnerabilities while misrepresenting himself as caring and empathetic. Session then exploited the victims’ vulnerabilities to compel their commercial sex acts.
At times, Session used food and housing to control and coerce the victims. For example, he would not permit one of his victims to eat if the victim did not follow his instructions. Often, Session required his victims to engage in sexual activity with him after they had spent a night having compelled sexual intercourse with up to 18 men.
Further, the evidence presented during the trial demonstrated that Session resorted to extreme physical violence to compel and intimidate certain victims. He violently punched some of the victims in the back of their heads in order not to leave marks on their bodies. Once, Session dragged a victim to a shower and beat her in the back of her head with a metal object until she fell limp to the floor. Session also choked another victim to the point that she lost consciousness, beat another victim with a bat and brutalized yet another so badly that her nose ring fell out due to the force of the assault. In addition, Session took multiple victims to a nearby lake, where he held two of their heads underwater and threatened to drown them if they did not do as he ordered.
The evidence also showed that Session used a firearm to intimidate and control his victims. He consistently kept a firearm in his possession and frequently displayed it to victims or referred to it when talking with them. Once, Session pointed a firearm at a victim while he was driving and threatened to “kill” her after she asked him how he would feel if someone treated his daughter the way he treated her.
Finally, the evidence indicated that Session manipulated and took advantage of some victims’ substance abuse problems to compel their commercial sex services. For example, Session provided victims with cocaine and methamphetamine to give them sufficient energy to engage in commercial sex acts and force them to lose weight.
The FBI Miami Field Office, Ft. Pierce Resident Agency, investigated the case, with assistance from the Highlands County, Florida, Sheriff’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Hoover for the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorneys Leah Branch and Matthew Thiman of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit prosecuted the case.
Anyone who has information about human trafficking should report that information to the National Human Trafficking Hotline toll-free at 1-888-373-7888, which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For more information about human trafficking, visit www.humantraffickinghotline.org. Information on the Justice Department’s efforts to combat human trafficking can be found at www.justice.gov/humantrafficking.
The Okeechobee City Council voted to approve the 7 Brews Coffee shop after several meetings that focused on the possible traffic impacts.
The facility will be constructed south of route 70 east at SE 8th Avenue.
Both the planning board and Vice Mayor Monica Clark voiced concerns about traffic backing up on 8th Avenue too often.
City Administrator Gary Ritter recently visited the 7 Brews in Ft. Pierce and said he came away impressed with how they handle the traffic flow.
“I think traffic will go in and out and go quite nicely now that they have added a new lot to the property.”
A warming center will open at 6:30 pm tonight in Okeechobee as we brace for more cold air.
The center is operated by RiteLife Services at 202 NE 2nd Street, Suite 5.
It will remain open until air temperatures exceed 40 degrees.
The forecast had temperatures dipping to as low as 35 degrees and wind chills as low as 30 degrees.
Florida set a record for snow fall, breaking a 70 year old record. Eight inches of snow was recorded in Milton.
Martin County Fire Rescue wants to build a new station west of Palm City to handle the increased growth.
They have no plan to man the station they built way out on Martin Grade near the Okeechobee County line.
The county can dispatch and have an ambulance or fire truck reach its destination by eight minutes, on 82 percent of calls for service.
They also proposed to move the fire station in Indiantown off Warfield Blvd.
Fire Chief Chad Cianculli said if the county doesn’t add a new fire station in the next five years they will have lower fire protection ratings which will mean higher insurance rates for residents.
Commissioner Ed Ciampi said the old station on the grade closed many years ago. He said residents even then assumed they would need fire rescue and ambulance services in rural areas.