WOKC Local News – July 08, 2026, 7:40 AM
Transcript
WOKC News. Drug dealer off to prison with WOKC News. I’m Charles Murphy. The Narcotics Task Force, with another successful operation, one made a junior sentenced to 14 years in prison for cocaine charges. In September of 2024, he allegedly sold crack cocaine to confidential sources on two occasions near a church. They searched a home at 104 Northeast 6th Street. Days later, he tried to flee but was captured. Okeechobee City Council honoring police officer Kelly Cortez for 20 years of service. She is a school resource officer. This year, she also received a life-saving award as she saved a first grader at Okeechobee Christian Academy who was choking on his food. The city approves their contract with the new administrator Denise Whitehead, who takes over next week. She’ll be paid $125,000 per year. Whitehead did make a request for more security from the city. And it’s not necessarily this sitting council that worries me by any means. And we understand. But I don’t plan to be here only two years. Okeechobee County commissioners hosting the Smithsonian exhibit of Native Americans in November and December. They also introduced their new deputy fire chief Jimmy Myers. He had 33 years of experience in firefighting with St. Lucie County and trained much of the staff of the Okeechobee County Fire Rescue. Coquina Water Management District Board of Supervisors still want to maintain roads in the Viking property. We’ll have to get a special act of the legislature. Supervisor Sean Wilcox says he wants to have taxing authority to do the road work. Our budget hasn’t changed. We’ve been doing all the roads. So it’s not like it’s costing us more except possibly fuel right now. And we have the ability to ask for more money from residents if we need more money to get the same work we were doing done. We have till June. We have, well, we’d have to do it quick. But we have the ability to raise the amount that we’re getting for property. We need to raise funds to be able to maintain the roads properly. The district dealing with a $50,000 bill potentially on an existing grader. They have rented a grader in the interim to get work done. A resident, Jessica Dakin, complained about an employee using company vehicles for private purposes and that twice had been cited for driving on a suspended license. Supervisor Wilcox wanted to fire the employee. I think that both the other board members should not have even voted on it because they did have a personal gain to make with it. One of them needed to be working to pay for the four-wheeler. The other one’s dating his sister. So neither one of them should have even voted on that at all. And I was told they would not vote on it. And they did. So their words means nothing. So them telling me they’re going to look at this means nothing either. The village of Indian Town approving the sixth phase of Terra Lago. It’s mostly commercial, 100,000 square feet, fronting Allapattah Road. Developer Josh Kellum says they’re having no trouble finding buyers for the homes at Terra Lago. I think right now what you’re seeing is somewhere around 25 to 30 new residences purchasing a month. And so that will dictate the timeline of the continued phases and growth. Oogachobee deputies locking up a sex offender on a warrant. Louie Lee is facing charges that he failed to change his cell phone, telephone number, employment information, or status related to higher education, and failed to re-register after moving. He’s held in a $10,000 bond. He was convicted in Alabama of a first degree felony. I’m Charles Murphy, WOKC News.
Recorded from the WOKC daily newscast (Glades Media).