Unincorporated Lake

3 killed, 1 critically injured in early morning crash near Howey-in-the-Hills

HOWEY-IN-THE-HILLS, Fla.—Three women were killed and another woman was critically injured after the SUV they were in hit a pole, overturned several times and ejected all four of them Sunday, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

Just after 3:15 a.m., a 2024 Jeep Grand Cherokee was traveling northbound on State Road 19 near Saint Florian Lane when the driver, a 30-year-old Mount Dora woman, failed to negotiate a curve, FHP said. The Jeep ran off the road, struck a pole and overturned several times, ejecting the driver, and her three passengers, a 32-year-old woman, a 28-year-old woman, and a 26-year-old woman, all of Eustis. None of the women were wearing seatbelts.

The driver and one passenger were pronounced deceased on the scene, and two passengers were transported to Orlando Regional Medical Center, where one of them died. The 26-year-old Eustis woman remains in critical condition.

 

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Davenport motorcyclist killed in crash near Clermont

CLERMONT, Fla.—The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating a crash that killed a Davenport woman late Saturday night.

Around 11:20 p.m., a 78-year-old Clermont man was driving a 2003 Mercury Grand Marquis northbound on U.S. Highway 27 approaching Sawgrass Bay Boulevard near Clermont, when he failed to see a 2024 Yamaha motorcycle ahead of him, according to FHP.

The Mercury struck the motorcycle, and a 2023 Telsa Model Y being driven by a 48-year-old Clermont man, then rear-ended the Mercury. The motorcyclist, a 39-year-old Davenport woman, was transported to AdventHealth – Four Corners Emergency Room, where she was pronounced deceased.

The driver of the Mercury, and his passenger, an 80-year-old Clermont woman, and the driver of the Tesla, and his passengers, a 40-year-old woman, and an 80-year-old man, both of Clermont, were not injured. The crash remains under investigation.

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Fatal crash shuts down Lake Erie Road near Groveland, Mascotte man killed

GROVELAND, Fla.—Lake Erie Road is closed in both directions near County Road 565 outside of Groveland, as the Florida Highway Patrol investigates a fatal crash.

A 31-year-old Leesburg man was driving a 2020 Ford F350 westbound on Lake Erie Road and failed to maintain his lane while negotiating a curve. He went off the road and hit a tree around 5:20 p.m. Monday, according to FHP.

The driver was transported to Orlando Health – South Lake Hospital with serious injuries and his passenger, a 27-year-old Mascotte man, was pronounced deceased on the scene. The crash remains under investigation.

 

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Crash near Howey-in-the-Hills kills Dunnellon man late Saturday, injures 2 Groveland teens

HOWEY-IN-THE-HILLS, Fla.—The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating a crash that killed a 30-year-old man and injured two teens Saturday night.

Shortly before 11:45 p.m., a 17-year-old male of Groveland, was driving a 2020 Audi A3 southbound on State Road 19 near Arrowtree Boulevard, outside of Howey-in-the Hills, when he veered into the northbound lane. The A3 sideswiped a 2013 Ford Mustang traveling northbound, sending the Mustang off the right side of the road, where it struck a ditch, according to FHP.

The driver of the Mustang, a Dunnellon man, was pronounced deceased on the scene. The driver of the A3, and his passenger, a 17-year-old female, also of Groveland, were transported to South Lake Hospital with minor injuries.

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FWC to host series of virtual public meetings on bear hunting proposals

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is holding a series of virtual public meetings to collect feedback directly from Florida residents on proposals for highly-regulated black bear hunting in Florida that will be presented to commissioners at FWC’s May meeting. The content covered in all meetings is identical, and it is not necessary to attend more than one virtual public meeting.

The meeting dates and times are as follows:

At the Dec. 2024 commission meeting, the FWC’s Bear Management Program gave commissioners a five-year update on implementing the 2019 Florida Black Bear Management Plan, highlighting recent bear management and research efforts. Following the presentation, the Commissioners directed staff to return to a future Commission meeting to propose options for implementing a potential bear hunt.

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Man arrested for crash that killed Leesburg man in 2023

LEESBURG, Fla.—A Leesburg man has been arrested in the death of a 94-year-old man killed in a crash in December 2023.

Donald Urban Jass, also of Leesburg, was driving a 2015 Subaru Forester eastbound on Plantation Boulevard when a 2017 Chevy Malibu slammed into him at the intersection of U.S. Highway 27. The Malibu was traveling between 62 and 74 miles per hour at impact, and was traveling at 81 miles per hour just 1.5 seconds before the crash, the vehicle’s data later showed. The Malibu’s driver, Graedonn Humphrey, was southbound on U.S. Highway 27 when he ran the light and hit Jass, according to a probable cause affidavit. The speed limit in that area is 55 miles per hour

Jass, an Army Bronze Star Medal recipient for his service in Vietnam, was transported to South Lake-Blue Cedar Hospital where he was pronounced dead less than an hour after the crash.

Humphrey, who does not have a driver license, was transported to UF Health Leesburg Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries and released the same day. After clearing the crash, a Florida Highway Patrol traffic homicide investigator went to the address listed on his identification card and found the home vacant.

Four days later the investigator was able to contact Humphrey at an apartment on Bentley Road in Leesburg. Humphrey said he was aware he was driving without a license and when the light turned yellow, he attempted to stop, but the brakes “were not working properly,” the affidavit states. A later inspection of the brakes showed they were functioning properly and the pads appeared new and recently replaced.

DNA collected from the Malibu’s deployed airbag matched Humphrey, who is on probation currently, and was at the time of the crash. A warrant was issued for his arrest for vehicular homicide and operating a vehicle without a driver’s license causing a death late last week, and troopers arrested him at his Leesburg home Monday. He is being held in the Lake county Jail on no bond.

Previous story: Sunday Afternoon Crash Kills Leesburg Man, 94 – Inside Lake

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Social media monitoring sparks investigation: Multiple tips result in Eustis man’s arrest

EUSTIS, Fla.— A Eustis man is facing 10 counts of possession of obscene and lewd materials, following an investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

The suspect was identified and arrested after the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) received multiple tips about accounts linked to a man, later identified as Randall Lee Small II, 38.

According to a probable cause affidavit, FDLE began investigating tips that came into NCMEC’s CyperTipline (CT) from multiple social media platforms last year, including Facebook, TikTok and Snapchat.  A tip came from Facebook in May 2024, regarding one of its users uploading six files containing “child erotica.”

“Child erotica images portray an unclothed, partially clothed, or clothed child depicted in a sexually explicit manner indicating the child has a willingness to engage in sexual activity,” the affidavit states.

In August 2024, an FDLE agent attempted to speak with Small at his home on Pine Road in the Pine Lakes area of unincorporated Eustis. The agent spoke with Small’s mother, who said he was not home, and the agent left her business card. Small never called her and the CT report was closed; an additional tip from Snapchat stated username Randallringo uploaded 25 child erotica images, and users he shared the content with called him a “predator” because the girls he was referring to were only 9 and 12 years old, according to the affidavit.  The affidavit does not include the date this tip was received.

On Jan. 15, FDLE agents traveled to Small’s place of employment. Small was summoned to the clubhouse at the golf course where he worked in unincorporated Eustis, and he pulled up and left on a golf cart three times before finally parking. As he walked toward agents, he was making swiping motions on his phone and later admitted he was deleting messages and photos of juveniles in bikinis. Agents asked Small if they could see his phone, and he stated, “No, not without a warrant.”

An agent took the phone as evidence and Small, who seemed “embarrassed,” admitted he was stupid for posting the photos. He claimed he would never touch a child, and he got the photos from the internet. Small said he had only been sharing the photos for a year, and an agent told him that was untrue, and he had been on her “radar since 2021.” Small reportedly replied, “I know.”

FDLE obtained a warrant for the phone and found multiple images of child erotica. Small was charged with 10 counts of possession of obscene and lewd materials, stemming from files found on his TikTok and Snapchat accounts. A warrant was issued for his arrest March 10, and he was arrested at home Thursday. He was transported to the Lake County Jail, where he is being held on no bond.

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One killed, one airlifted in wrong-way crash near Clermont Wednesday

CLERMONT, Fla.—The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating a crash that killed a Wesley Chapel woman early Wednesday in unincorporated Clermont.

Just before 1 a.m., a 39-year-old man of Greensboro, North Carolina was driving a 2004 GMC Sierra the wrong way in the southbound lane of State Road 33, near County Road 474 when he slammed into a 2007 Hyundai Sonata being driven by a 27-year-old Wesley Chapel woman. The impact rotated the Sonata clockwise and flipped the Sierra, FHP said.

The Wesley Chapel woman was transported to Lakeland Regional Medical Center and pronounced deceased; the North Carolina man was airlifted to Osceola Regional Medical Center with serious injuries.

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Suspected Sorrento murderer in custody

SORRENTO, Fla.—The man accused of killing a man in Sorrento Thursday, is in custody according to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.

“… Justin Fout has been located and taken into custody by law enforcement. As the situation is still under investigation, additional details are not yet available,” LCSO Cpl. Chanel Martin said late Friday afternoon. 

Deputies were also attempting to locate Patricia Neeley, as person of interest in the murder of Justin Kates, 37. LCSO has not released any new information on her whereabouts.

Fout is suspected of murdering Kates during an altercation Thursday at 31504 Colby Place in Sorrento. An argument apparently escalated and Fout shot Kates, killing him. Kates was found lying in the roadway when deputies arrived on scene.

Fout fled the scene, along with Neeley, in an older model white Dodge Ram van Thursday; he was located at at undisclosed location Friday following a media release.

Previous story: https://insidelake.com/2025/02/21/deputies-searching-for-sorrento-murder-suspect/ 

 

 

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Deputies searching for Sorrento murder suspect

SORRENTO, Fla.—A man is on the run, accused of killing a man in Sorrento Thursday, according to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.

Witnesses said Justin Kates, 37, and Justin Joseph Raymond Fout, 31, engaged in a verbal argument Thursday at 31504 Colby Place in Sorrento. The argument apparently escalated and Fout shot Kates, killing him, LCSO said. He was found dead lying in the roadway when deputies arrived on scene.

Fout fled the scene, along with Patricia Neeley, in an older model white Dodge Ram van. The van should have front and rear end damage and red transfer paint on the rear; the rear right door is spray-painted black, and the left rear door window is busted out, according to LCSO.

A warrant has been issued for Fout’s arrest for second-degree murder; Neeley is not facing charges at this time, but she is a person of interest. If you have information on their whereabouts, call LCSO at 352-343-2101.

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