De LEON SPRINGS— A Sorrento woman was killed Thursday afternoon after the car she was riding in rear-ended a Ford F-350 on U.S. Highway 17 in Volusia County, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
A 2013 Hyundai Elantra being driven by a 41-year-old Eustis man, was traveling southbound on U.S. Highway 17 approaching West Davis Street near De Leon Springs in Volusia County, when he failed to slow for a Ford F-350 pickup truck shortly after 5:30 p.m. Thursday. The Hyundai rear-ended the Ford, seriously injuring the Eustis man. His passenger, a 40-year-old woman from Sorrento, was transported to AdventHealth DeLand, where she was pronounced dead. The driver was airlifted to Halifax Health Medical Center in Daytona Beach with serious injuries. Neither occupant was wearing a seatbelt, FHP Lt. Tara Crescenzi said.
The two men in the Ford, both 22, one of Jacksonville and one of Orange Park, suffered minor injuries and were not transported. They were both wearing seatbelts, Crescenzi said.
EUSTIS, Florida—A man without a license who police say fled a chain-reaction crash he caused, ran two stop signs and then slammed into the side of a Ford Focus on Valentine’s Day is facing three charges related to the crashes, according to an arrest affidavit.
Gustavo Miguel Garcia, 29, of Leesburg was driving a white Ford flatbed pickup truck when he rear-ended a black Dodge SUV at Grove Street and Floral Avenue and fled the scene just before 6:20 p.m. Tuesday, witnesses told Eustis Police Department.
Gustavo Garcia PHOTO: Lake County Sheriff’s Office
The witnesses followed Garcia and he turned onto Wilt Avenue, and ran the stop sign at Eustis Street and then ran a second stop sign at Wilt Avenue and Bay Street, also known as State Road 19. When Garcia ran the second stop sign, he slammed into a silver Ford Focus being driven by David Thomas Cook. The crash critically injured Cook and he was airlifted to Orlando Regional Medical Center. Cook’s condition was unknown at press time.
Garcia was found to have a suspended license and was taken into custody. He was arrested for reckless driving with serious bodily injury, driving with a suspended license causing serious bodily injury and leaving the scene of a crash. He was transported to the Lake County Jail and jail medical staff would not accept him until he was medically cleared. He was taken to AdventHealth Waterman, where he was cleared and transported back to LCJ. He was released Wednesday on $10,500 bond.
EUSTIS, Florida— Two people are in the Lake County Jail on more than $100,000 bond for drug charges, including trafficking in methamphetamine, after Eustis Police Department’s K9 Mya sniffed out more than a pound of the drug.
Shortly after 2:45 p.m. Monday, Jamie Leigh Gregory, 36, drove past EPD on South Bay Street with her passenger, Robert L. Mullins, 48; Mullins was not wearing his seatbelt. Officers pulled the red pickup truck over and it stopped in the parking lot of a nearby funeral home, according to an arrest affidavit.
K9 Mya PHOTO: Eustis Police Department
Gregory, of Eustis, and Mullins, of Dona Vista, abruptly jumped out of the truck as soon as it stopped and a large knife holstered to Mullins’s left side was quickly removed by one of the officers. Mullins admitted to having about 10 grams of marijuana in his pocket and handed it over to an officer while Mya and her handler walked around the truck.
Mya alerted to the front passenger side of the truck and officers found a black bag in the front passenger seat that contained a large bag of methamphetamine, weighing 456 grams—just over a pound. EPD also found 12 strips of suboxone and one Alprazolam pill. Neither Gregory nor Mullins would take ownership of the drugs and both denied knowing it was in the truck. Gregory did tell police she and Mullins had used methamphetamine with each other earlier in the day.
PHOTOS: Lake County Sheriff’s Office
Mullins and Gregory were arrested for trafficking in methamphetamine more than 200 grams, possession of suboxone, possession of Alprazolam, and possess of drug paraphernalia. Mullins is facing an additional charge of possession marijuana and is being held on $106,000 bond. Gregory is being held on $105,000 bond.
TAVARES, Florida—An Astor woman is in the Lake County Jail after fleeing deputies in a stolen car in unincorporated Leesburg and ending her escapade outside the sallyport doors at the jail Saturday night, according to an arrest affidavit.
An LCSO deputy observed a gray car roll the stop sign at Harbor Shores Road and Pine Island Drive and attempted to perform a traffic stop, the affidavit states.
Connie Adams PHOTO: Lake County Sheriff’s Office
The car, being driven by Connie Ellene Adams, 31, passed another deputy who was outside his vehicle and failed to follow his commands to stop, fleeing at a high rate of speed. The car fled to County Road 44 and County Road 452 and through the city limits of Eustis, running numerous traffic lights. Adams continued to drive into Tavares and “came to a rest outside of the Lake County Jail’s sallyport doors,” the affidavit states.
Adams was taken into custody and the car was found to be stolen from Marion County. Adams, who has multiple driver license suspensions, was arrested for fleeing and eluding, driving while license suspended, grand theft auto and attaching tag not assigned. She was walked into LCJ, where she is being held on $9,000 bond.
OCALA, Florida—Two Eustis teens, well-known to Lake County law enforcement were arrested Wednesday after fleeing from a Marion County Sheriff’s Office deputy in a truck stolen from Lake County earlier this week.
Robert “Swag” Sharp, 16, was driving the stolen 2010 white Ford F150 truck when a Marion County Sheriff’s Office deputy located it near Dogwood Road and Southeast 58th Avenue Wednesday night. The truck, reported stolen from Grand Island, contained a firearm, according to MCSO.
The deputy attempted to pull the truck over, and Sharp fled, running several stop signs and red lights and driving into oncoming traffic. The MCSO deputy performed a PIT maneuver, flipping the truck and ending the pursuit around 9 p.m. A PIT maneuver, (precision immobilization technique,) is a tactic in which a law enforcement vehicle sideswipes the suspect vehicle’s rear to cause the rear wheels to lose traction, usually resulting in the driver losing control of the vehicle.
A witness told Inside Lake, the truck flipped on its side near a busy CVS Pharmacy and deputies immediately searched it once it was back on its wheels.
Sharp was found in the truck near the stolen firearm and had a small amount of marijuana on him; his backseat passenger, Jaiden Vickers, 18, was also found with a small amount of marijuana, arrested and transported to the Marion County Jail (MCJ.)
Sharp was arrested for fleeing and eluding, grand theft auto, grand theft of a firearm, unlawful possession of a firearm by a minor and possession of marijuana under 20 grams. He was transported to MCJ and turned over to the Department of Juvenile Justice.
Vickers was arrested in January 2021 after a loaded gun was found in his backpack at Eustis High School, along with three different pills, including Ritalin. Vickers told a Lake County Sheriff’s Office school resource deputy he belonged to “Folk Nation, Gangsta Disciples” and denied knowledge of the gun. in 2021 The SRD spoke to Vickers’ father and he said the boy posted a photo of himself holding a gun on Instagram and had his phone taken away as punishment, according to that arrest affidavit.
Jaiden Vickers is seen here holding a gun in a photo from 2021. PHOTO: Instagram
Sharp was arrested last year for his involvement in a drive-by shooting in the 1200 block of East Hazzard Avenue on Feb. 7, 2022. That shooting was part of a longstanding juvenile gang rivalry, Eustis Police Department told Inside Lake last year.
The outcome of Vickers and Sharp’s cases are unknown because juvenile records are not available online and the Lake County Courthouse was closed at press time.
EUSTIS, Florida—A memorial has been set for a well-known homeless man who passed away last month.
Clyde “Eddie” Brooks, a loyal Dallas Cowboys fan, was found unresponsive Jan. 10 in Tavares by a mail carrier and transported to AdventHealth Waterman, where he died from an apparent medical episode. Known to most as “Clyde” he was well-liked and an earlier story about his death was shared more than 100 times and dozens of people commented and shared personal stories about Clyde.
“There were many people who touched his life, and he touched ours,” Jan Glessner told Inside Lake.
Glessner was a longtime friend and called him, “Eddie.” He stayed overnight at her home and spent some Thanksgivings with her as well. Other times she would put him in a motel during the holidays. “He was my buddy,” she told Inside Lake.
Pastor Kenneth Harley of DeBary will lead the service and was Clyde’s emergency contact. He has his cremains and will put them in a plot in Mount Dora, Glessner said.
The memorial is scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday, at Life Community Church, 2910 Dillard Road, Eustis. The public is welcome to attend and share their memories.
EUSTIS, Florida—The man shot in Eustis Monday night has been identified.
Wseni “Haitian Black” Laguerre, 39 was shot multiple times around 8:20 p.m. Monday following a confrontation with an unknown individual, Eustis Police Department Chief Craig Capri said.
EPD responded to the shooting at 202 Palm Ave near Grove Street and found Laguerre with multiple gunshot wounds. Witnesses told police an individual had some sort of confrontation with Laguerre and then shot him multiple times and fled the scene.
Detectives are currently interviewing witnesses and following up on leads, Capri said.
Laguerre was transported to AdventHealth Waterman in Tavares, causing the hospital to be placed on lockdown, standard procedure when a victim of violence in brought in for treatment. This prevents suspects from entering the hospital and causing more harm to the victim.
Eustis Police Department responds to a shooting on Palm Avenue Monday night. One man was killed. COURTESY PHOTO
Laguerre was pronounced dead a brief time later, according to Capri.
It appears he was targeted, and a $10,000 reward is being offered for information that leads to an arrest, Capri said.
If you have information on Laguerre’s murder, call EPD at 352-483-5400.
EUSTIS, Florida—The man shot in Eustis Monday night has died.
Eustis Police Department responded to a shooting on Palm Ave near Grove Street, just before 8:30 p.m. Monday, EPD Police Chief Craig Capri told Inside Lake.
The man was rushed to AdventHealth Waterman in Tavares, causing the hospital to be placed on lockdown, standard procedure when a victim of violence is brought in for treatment. He was pronounced dead a short time later, according to Capri. His name has not been publicly released.
It appears the man was targeted, and there was no information available on a suspect at press time.
More information is expected to be released Tuesday.
EUSTIS, Florida—Eustis Police Department is on the scene of a shooting on Palm Ave near Grove Street, EPD Police Chief Craig Capri told Inside Lake.
One man was shot and was rushed to a local hospital around 8:30 p.m. Monday. EPD detectives are enroute and road patrol officers are securing the crime scene, Capri said. There was no information available on the suspect(s) at press time.
Capri is headed to the scene and will update Inside Lake as soon as more information is available.
EUSTIS, Florida—A Eustis man is in the Lake County Jail accused of masturbating while watching a young girl as her mother did laundry late Friday night, according to an arrest affidavit.
Just before midnight Saturday morning, a woman called Eustis Police Department and reported a man was masturbating while looking at her daughter at Spin City, 320 Ardice Avenue, Eustis.
The girl’s father told police he was sitting in his vehicle while his wife and daughter – who is only 8 years old – were inside doing laundry. He said his daughter was playing near the vending machines when he saw a man, later identified as Jeremy Anton Jones, 28, sitting directly across from her. The man said Jones’ pants were down and he seemed to be masturbating while staring at the young girl, the affidavit states.
The man went into the laundromat to protect his daughter and confronted Jones. He shouted at Jones, which got his wife’s attention and she also saw Jones staring at her daughter and masturbating. Jones left when he was confronted and began walking towards Tractor Supply Co., according to the affidavit. The couple described Jones as a black male, wearing a blue hoodie, dark-colored sweatpants and blue boxer shorts.
As the responding officer was leaving the scene, a call came in from RaceTrac, 2850 South Bay Street, just a block away. The caller stated a black male in a dark-colored hoodie was exposing himself at the gas station. As the officer arrived, he spotted Jones, wearing a blue hoodie and grey sweatpants that were pulled down, exposing his blue boxer shorts, the affidavit states. The complainant never saw Jones expose himself in RaceTrac, but did witness him pulling his pants up.
Jones denied exposing himself and said a man tried to fight him at the laundromat. EPD ran Jones’ name and found he had been trespassed from RaceTrac in July 2021 and a few minutes later, the young girl’s mother showed up at the gas station and identified Jones as the culprit.
Jones was arrested for lewd and lascivious exhibition of a sexual organ and trespass after warning. He was transported to LCJ, where he is being held on $5,500 bond.
