News Cast June 17th:
The U.S Small Business Administration announced low interest federal disaster loans will be available to businesses and non-profits who sustained economic impacts and loss caused by the drought this year.
The disaster covers counties in this region including Okeechobee, DeSoto, Glades, Hendry, Highlands, Indian River, Martin, Osceola, Indian River, Palm Beach, and St. Lucie.
The SBA can not provide disaster loans to agriculture producers, farmers or ranchers.
Highlands County officials are talking about a moratorium on sand mine operations after some recent reluctance and resistance from the planning and zoning board.
They turned down a 243 mine in Venus near the Archbold Biological Station.
Some regulations considered include a one mile buffer from residential areas.
Commissioner Kevin Roberts said the word moratorium is like a four letter word to people.
“Once you go down into the ground and take the sand out you are taking it out of the ag industry there. You can’t go down there and saw I’ll have horses, chickens, goats, tomatoes, oranges, whatever.”
Commissioner Chris Campbell said mines that are already approved should be able to move forward.
County Attorney Sherry Sutphen said residents are concerned about trucks damaging roads and it is appropriate for some regulations to be imposed on sand mines.
“If not the roads will continue to deteriorate at the taxpayer’s expense.”
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed another death warrant for Michael Bernard Bell. He is scheduled to die by lethal injection on July 15th for the 1993 murders of two people out a bar in Jacksonville. It would mark the 8th execution in Florida this year, tying the state’s modern-era record set in 1984 and 2014.
Court documents show Bell used an AK-47 in the killings that prosecutors said was motivated by revenge.
A motorist clocked by troopers at better than 110 miles per hour led authorities on a more than 35 mile chase on the Florida Turnpike.
The suspect was not an American citizen either.
Victor Siaulys, 20, was finally boxed in by troopers north of the Fort Drum Service Plaza in Martin County. The chase began at mile marker 149 in St. Lucie County.
Maximum speeds reached 140 miles per hour.
The suspect is a resident of Switzerland. He faces charges of fleeing and attempting to elude police, reckless driving, use of a counterfeit license and misdemeanor marijuana possession.
An ATV chase in the Viking Property landed an Okeechobee man in jail on felony charges.
Deputies said Johnathan Sills was spotted operating the ATV with a female at 41 miles per hour in the 29000 block of NW 160th Avenue.
Deputies followed the ATV until it went off road and they could not follow. They did find some ATV tracks and followed them to NW 296th Street where the female walked out of the woods.
The ATV broke down in the woods and was towed after the chase.
Sills was charged with fleeing and attempting to elude police.
The defense for Sebastian Urbano, the teenager charged with murdering another local teen, wanted to enter into evidence a photo they claim shows the victim had a propensity for firearms and ammunition.
Hernan Mora testified that the phone was of an Instagram screen shot where the murder victim was holding a clip that holds ammunition.
The suspect’s sister Kathleen Breg said the two victims had violent reputations. She said she was told they would record physical fights and beatings of other people at Lock 7 and Lake Okeechobee and post those videos on social media. She said they would also brag about the beatings.
Breg said Urbano was dating a former girlfriend of one of the two victims of the shooting, who survived.
The defense claims Urbano acted in self defense and only fired his gun after being shot at. He was shot in the leg.
The case report from Okeechobee Sheriff detectives said Urbano went looking for one of the victims with six to eight other boys, found him inside a vehicle at Scott Driver Boat Ramp and pointed a weapon at him. Urbano claimed the murder victim had shot him in the leg as he was talking to two girls.
The shooting took place on August 26, 2023.
The murder victim was shot three times. One witness claimed they saw Urbano stand over the victim and shoot several rounds into his body.
Other witnesses said the victim was not armed.
11-12 shots may have been fired and the vehicle suffered three bullet holes.
The circuit judge reserved ruling on the motion until a later date.
The Florida Governor and Cabinet approved a land swap that impacts the Big Cedar Lodge project.
The County gave up 52.6 acres of submerged land on the Kissimmee River while the state gives up 12.43 acres considered upland property that could be developed.
Commission chairman David Hazellief said he thinks this is a good deal for both sides. He said it allows the Big Cedar Lodge to move forward. He said the developer is supportive of this deal.