LEESBURG, Fla.—The teenager accused of killing a Leesburg man Wednesday has surrendered and is in the Lake County Jail, according to a Leesburg Police Department social media post.
Kevin Harrison, 19, is accused of shooting Lekendre Hall, 37, at a home at 1906 West Main Street around 8:45 p.m. Wednesday. LPD responded to the scene and found Hall lying on the ground suffering from at least one gunshot wound; he was transported to UF Health Leesburg, where he was pronounced deceased from his injuries, Capt. Joe Iozzi said Thursday.
Crime scene investigators and detectives responded to the scene and Harrison was identified as the suspect after several witnesses were interviewed, Iozzi said.
Harrison is charged with second-degree murder and is being held on no bond. Police have not released a motive for the killing.
LEESBURG, Fla.—Leesburg Police Department is searching for a man they say shot and killed another man on Main Street Wednesday night.
LPD responded to 1906 West Main Steet around 8:45 p.m. and found Lekendre Hall, 37, lying on the ground suffering from at least one gunshot wound. He was transported to UF Health Leesburg where he pronounced deceased, according to Capt. Joe Iozzi.
“Leesburg officers secured the crime scene and detectives were then summoned along with Leesburg CSI,” Iozzi said, and after interviewing multiple witnesses, Kevin Harrison, 19, was identified as the shooter.
Harrison has not been apprehended and LPD has not released a motive for the killing. If you have information on Harrison’s whereabouts, call LPD at 352-787-2121.
UMATILLA, Fla.—Three people are behind bars and $50,000 worth of drugs are off the streets following a search warrant at a Umatilla home early Wednesday, according to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.
Acting on Crimeline tips and complaints, LCSO’s SWAT team, along with detectives from LCSO, Clermont Police Department, Eustis Police Department, Leesburg Police Department, Mount Dora Police Department and the Department of Homeland Security wrapped up a six-month long investigation Wednesday with the execution of the search warrant at 38945 Pine St., in unincorporated Umatilla.
Law enforcement detained three people found inside the home, Robert Donaldson, 46, Joana Silva, 22, and Lashonda Gaston, 44. Donaldson and Silva are engaged, according to LCSO.
Upon searching the home, law enforcement found a large amount of powder and crack cocaine, weighing about 1.5 pounds, along with an ounce of fentanyl in pill form and 7 pounds of marijuana, with a combined street value of $50,000. The fentanyl pills were stamped with a handicap symbol, LCSO said; a stolen gun and $10,000 in cash were also found.
PHOTOS: Lake County Sheriff’s Office
Donaldson, who was already on probation for possession of drugs and resisting arrest in a 2021 case, was arrested for trafficking in cocaine, trafficking in fentanyl, possession of marijuana with intent to sell, possession of ammunition by a convicted felon, manufacturing cocaine into a cocaine base, possession of drug paraphernalia, and ownership, lease, rental, or possession of a residence for trafficking in or manufacturing a controlled substance; he is being held in the Lake County Jail on no bond.
Silva, who was caught trying to flush crack down the toilet, was arrested for tampering with evidence, trafficking in cocaine, trafficking in fentanyl, possession of marijuana with intent to sell, manufacturing cocaine into a cocaine base, possession of drug paraphernalia and ownership, lease, rental, or possession of a residence for trafficking in or manufacturing a controlled substance; she is being held in LCJ on $561,000 bond.
Gaston was arrested for trafficking in fentanyl and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon; she is being held In LCJ on $20,000 bond.
LEESBURG, Fla.—A Leesburg woman is being held in the Lake County Jail on no bond after she admitted she stabbed another woman, according to an arrest affidavit.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call early Wednesday morning stating a person had been stabbed at home in unincorporated Leesburg. The address where the stabbing occurred is redacted from the affidavit, but sources told Inside Lake it occurred on Kaylee Way, near Radio Road. The victim, whose name is also redacted from the affidavit, had approximately seven injuries “consistent with being stabbed with a knife or other edged implement,” and was “bleeding profusely.” She told police Jillian Joan Viccaro, 24, stabbed her.
The relationship between the victim and Viccaro is also redacted from the affidavit, but LCSO Public Information Officer Chanel Martin told Inside Lake, the crime “is domestic in nature.” The victim was transported to an area hospital and is in stable condition, Martin said.
Deputies located Viccaro, who had no visible injuries, and she admitted to the stabbing, but said the victim attacked her first by “lunging at her,” the affidavit states. Viccaro was arrested for attempted domestic murder and aggravated domestic battery and transported to the Lake County Jail.
LAKE COUNTY, Fla.—At press time Christmas Eve, the jolly fellow best known as Santa Claus was last spotted in Greenland and had delivered more than 5 billion gifts, according to the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD.)
Little boys and girls (who should be in bed) can track the big guy’s movements online as he makes his way across the world with his trusty reindeer crew, by visiting NORAD Tracks Santa.
NORAD began tracking Santa in 1958 after taking over the duty from the U.S. Air Force.
LEESBURG, Fla.—A Umatilla motorcyclist was killed Tuesday when a sedan made a left turn and collided with him, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
A 2013 Hyundai Sonata, being driven by a 91-year-old Apopka man, was eastbound on County Road 452, in the left turn lane, at Sandpiper Drive, near Leesburg, shortly before noon when it made a left turn in the direct path of a 2002 Kawasaki motorcycle being ridden by a 56-year-old Umatilla man, FHP Trooper Migdalisis Garcia said in a press release.
The Umatilla man was transported to AdventHealth Waterman in Tavares, where he was pronounced deceased, Garcia said. The Apopka man and his passenger, a 76-year-old woman, also of Apopka, were not injured and remained on scene. The crash closed County Road 452 for more than four hours and reopened around 4 p.m. Tuesday.
LEESBURG, Fla.—The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating a crash that killed a motorcyclist late Tuesday morning near Leesburg and shut down County Road 452.
The crash occurred on County Road 452 near Sandpiper Drive, shortly before noon, and involved a Hyundai Sonata and a 2002 Kawasaki motorcycle, FHP Trooper Migdalisis Garcia said in an email. The driver and the passenger in the Sonata were not injured and the motorcyclist was transported to AdventHealth Waterman in Tavares and pronounced deceased.
LEESBURG, Fla.—A 94-year-old Leesburg man was killed Sunday afternoon when the SUV he was driving was struck by a car that ran a traffic light, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
The man was driving a 2015 Subaru Forester eastbound on Plantation Boulevard and was attempting to make a left turn on U.S. Highway 27 when he collided with a 2017 Chevrolet Malibu that was “unable to stop in time for the traffic signal,” around 4:15 p.m., Trooper Migdalisis Garcia said in a press release.
The front of the Malibu struck the left side of the Forester and injured both drivers. The Malibu driver, a 32-year-old Leesburg man, was taken to UF Health Leesburg Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries and the driver of the Forester was transported to South Lake Hospital-Blue Cedar, where he later died from his injuries, Garcia said.
EUSTIS, Fla.—An event to benefit a Lake County Sheriff’s Office school resource deputy who was diagnosed with cancer earlier this year is scheduled for Saturday.
What started as chest pain in 2022 turned into a terrifying diagnosis last summer for LCSO Cpl. Adam Tytler. In November 2022, Tytler went to a cardiologist for ongoing chest pain, and after a EKG showed his heart was in good shape, the cardiologist told him the pain was likely gastrointestinal. The next month, on Christmas Eve, Tytler discovered a swollen lymph node on his neck and by February the lymph node had not gotten any better. He was also suffering from a sinus infection at the time and went to his primary care doctor for treatment and mentioned the lymph node. The doctor chalked it up to the infection, but during the spring Tytler’s chest pain continued and had also moved to his back, and then he began to find swollen lymph nodes on his chest.
Tytler went through a battery of tests and upon reviewing the results, his doctor said it was likely cancer. Tytler sought a second opinion from the Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa and his fears were confirmed when he was diagnosed with Stage 4 Hodgkins Lymphoma in June 2023.
Tytler, his wife Tiffany, and two daughters, Shay 17, Lily, 14, are currently splitting their time between Mount Dora and Tampa for treatment and it is taking a financial toll on the family while already dealing with an emotional roller coaster. Tytler said he came forward with his struggle because cancer affects millions of people and often they go through it alone.
“I would have given up if it weren’t for my faith, my family and the support from the school resource deputy unit,” Tytler said. “I only wanted for those who are struggling to know they are not alone. Not now. Not ever and to never give up.”
Tytler’s struggle inspired Shannon Cook, organizer of Lake County’s annual Back the Blue Walk, and LCSO Lt. Kristin Thompson to create the benefit scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday at That Place, 925 North Bay Street, Eustis.
Dinners will be available for purchase, along with an auction of numerous items, including a Back the Blue basket with items from multiple Lake County law enforcement agencies, tickets to various events, like New Kids on the Block concert tickets and Richard Petty Driving Experience, along with a Yeti cooler packed with alcohol, various craft items made by local residents, a high-end fishing pole and numerous other items. A poker scramble is also scheduled to start at 9 a.m. at Gator Harley-Davidson, 1745 U.S. Highway 441, Leesburg, and will include five stops, ending at That Place, Cook told Inside Lake.
Tytler has spent nearly his entire adult life at LCSO, and most recently worked as a corporal in the school resource deputy unit. He prevented a shooting on the Eustis High School campus during the 2018-2019 school year and was awarded the Lake County Officer of the Year in 2019 for his efforts.
He said he is excited he has only one treatment left, and it has been a difficult journey. “Truthfully, it’s been challenging and difficult treatment-wise, not just for me but my family also,” Tytler said.
He will have to wait until after the new year to find out if he is cancer-free, he said.
Tytler told Inside Lake saying thank you to all those who have helped him, and contributed to the benefit will never be enough.
“My family and I are so appreciative and overwhelmed of the outpouring of love and support from everyone. Especially from people I’ve never met,” he said.
TAVARES, Fla.—In an unexpected twist Monday, a Leesburg man accused of gunning down his girlfriend last year pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon the same day jury selection for his trial was set to begin.
Alphonza Bryant, 41, was sentenced to 45 years in prison for killing Melissa Keonna Smith, 37, in the laundry room of her Leesburg home on Aug. 8, 2022.
Bryant was captured on video approaching Smith’s home, brandishing a firearm, and “engaging in a verbal altercation off-camera that culminated in a single gunshot,” Fifth Judicial Circuit State Attorney William “Bill” Gladson’s office stated in a press release.
A witness told Leesburg Police Department Bryant tried to force his way in the laundry room while armed and the witness was, “compelled to leave the scene.” Bryant fired a single shot, killing Smith, fled the scene and dropped a gun.
Bryant was arrested two days after the murder for a violation of probation in a prior case and later charged with Smith’s murder after an “exhaustive investigation by Leesburg Police Department.”
“We hope these charges allow for some level of healing and relief for the family and friends of Ms. Smith,” LPD Capt. Joe Iozzi said after Bryant’s arrest last year. “We would especially like to thank our community for their assistance with this investigation.”
Bryant is currently in the Lake County Jail and will remain there until he is transferred to the custody of the Florida Department of Corrections.
“Eyewitness testimony serves as a crucial pillar in prosecuting any case, let alone a murder case. Bryant knew the evidence stacked against him would weave the narrative of truth for jurors to convict him,” Gladson said in a statement. “Acknowledging this grim reality, we are pleased the defendant was sentenced to 45 years in prison. We hope this helps to bring closure to the tragic loss suffered by Melissa Keonna Smith’s family.”
