Leesburg

LEESBURG, Florida—A former employee of an assisted living facility is behind bars on 17 charges after a Leesburg Police Department investigation revealed she was stealing from several residents at the facility, according to a probable cause affidavit. LPD began investigating in August when the executive director of Vista Assisted Living, 700 South Lake Street, Leesburg, reported a 93-year-old resident was missing a ring from her room. The victim told police Angelique Sinceria Daniels, 24, was assisting her when Daniels told the victim she needed to attend a meeting. The victim left the room but returned shortly after when she found

9:30 a.m. Update: The officer’s leg is broken. He was assisting a female officer who was trying to detain a Baker Act patient who was running in and out of traffic on U.S. Highway 27 near Palm Plaza, according to Leesburg Police Capt. Joe Iozzi. LEESBURG, Florida—A Leesburg Police Officer was injured Friday, and may have a broken leg, according to Leesburg Police Department Capt. Joe Iozzi. Numerous people saw the officer down during rush hour traffic Friday morning. “An officer was injured fighting with a Baker Act (patient.) He may have a broken leg,” Iozzi told Inside Lake. The

LEESBURG, Florida—Leesburg Police Department and the Fifth Judicial Circuit State Attorney’s Office has charged a man in the murder of a Leesburg woman earlier this month, according to LPD Capt. Joe Iozzi. Alphonza Bryant, 40, also of Leesburg, is facing three charges, including first degree murder, armed burglary and possession of a weapon by a convicted felon. Bryant has been in the Lake County Jail since Aug. 10—two days after the murder—for a violation of probation stemming from a battery case in April. On Aug. 8, LPD responded to a home on Penn Street after someone reported that they believed

LEESBURG. Florida—Leesburg Police Department is investigating the death of a 37-year-old woman who was found shot early Monday morning, according to LPD Capt. Joe Iozzi. Someone called LPD and said they believed their friend was dead and when LPD officers arrived at the home in the 1200 block of Penn Street at 2:39 a.m. they found a black female deceased in a converted laundry room, Iozzi said in a press release. The woman appeared to have been shot and LPD detectives responded to the scene and are treating the death as a homicide; the investigation remains active. If you have

LEESBURG, Florida—The burglar shot by a Leesburg homeowner Monday has been identified. Jeffrey Scott Garrard, 55, of Leesburg, was shot Monday morning when he and another man—still on the loose—attempted to enter a home on Flora View Lane, Leesburg Police Capt. Joe Iozzi said in a press release. Garrard was transported to a local trauma center when he remains in ICU and has not been able to speak to detectives, Iozzi said. His partner in crime fled the scene; he is described as a white male, 5’8” to 5’9”, with a slim build. He was wearing a black hoodie and

LEESBURG, FLORIDA—Two would-be burglars got more than they bargained for Monday morning when one of them was shot by the homeowner they were trying to steal from, according to Leesburg Police Department. Two men entered a residence on Flora View Lane and the homeowner opened fire, shooting one of them, an LPD Facebook post stated Monday. The suspect was taken to a local trauma center for his injuries and the second suspect fled.  The homeowner was not injured. LPD established a perimeter for the second suspect, who is described as a white male, 5’8” to 5’9” with a slim build,

LEESBURG, Florida—A man who put his 6-year-old son on his lap and allowed him to steer his vehicle right into a light pole was arrested Friday for child abuse and no driver license, according to an arrest affidavit. Josue Suarez-Zeledon, 38, told Leesburg Police his 6-year-old asked him if he could drive around 3:30 p.m. Friday. Suarez-Zeledon pulled over near the intersection of South Street and South Lone Oak Drive and put his son on his lap, the affidavit states. Suarez-Zeledon was controlling the gas and brake pedals while the boy was steering, he told police. The vehicle began traveling

LEESBURG, Florida—A Leesburg couple’s shower was interrupted last week when their dog alerted them to a woman in their home who was armed with a kitchen knife, according to an arrest affidavit. Leesburg Police responded to an apartment on Birchwood Court around 6:40 a.m. June 1 on a report of a burglary. When they arrived, they found Jayla L. Tart, 19, who lives in the same apartment complex as the victims, sitting on the couch yelling obscenities at police, clutching the knife with both hands, according to the affidavit. Police tried to calm the situation and Tart finally threw the

LEESBURG, Florida—A woman temporarily staying with a man in Leesburg slashed him with a pocketknife last week when he came back to the apartment they were sharing to make sure she moved out, according to an arrest affidavit. Meghan Simpson Borsher, 49, was arrested for aggravated battery with a deadly weapon after her roommate told Leesburg Police Department, she slashed him in the arm with the knife when he demanded she leave the apartment. The man told LPD he moved his belongings out of the apartment on Washington Street May 31 and came back the following day to make sure

LEESBURG, Florida—A Leesburg man was killed in a single vehicle crash Saturday night, according to Leesburg Police Capt. Joe Iozzi. A witness told LPD, a 2011 Hyundai SUV being driven by Douglas Crews, was southbound on U.S. Highway 27 near Corley Island Road, when it hit a curb, overcorrected and rolled over several times, Iozzi said in a press release. Crews was ejected and pronounced dead on the scene. The crash closed a section of the southbound lanes of U.S. Highway 27 for about six hours Saturday night and remains under investigation.

LEESBURG, Florida—A Leesburg High School student was arrested Friday after he was found with a loaded gun in his backpack at school, according to an arrest affidavit. A teacher and an assistant principal responded to a classroom to assist a substitute teacher with three students who were possibly smoking a nicotine device around 9 a.m. Friday. The teacher and the AP removed the trio from the classroom and began walking them to an office and they were asked if they had anything they should not have; they submitted to a search, according to the affidavit. The teacher searched a 16-year-old

LEESBURG, Florida—A North Carolina man was killed Friday after a Lexus collided with the Cadillac he was driving, according to Leesburg Police Capt. Joe Iozzi. The preliminary investigation revealed Kenny Ray Amdahl, 69, of Hubbard North Carolina, was northbound on U.S. Highway 27/441 at Tally Road in a gold 1988 Cadillac when a silver 2019 Lexus being driven by Terrance Raghoonauth, 29, of Lauderdale, swerved into Amdahl’s lane, colliding with the Cadillac, Iozzi said in a press release. The Cadillac caught fire and Amdahl was pronounced dead on the scene, Iozzi said. Witnesses are encouraged to call LPD’s Traffic Unit

DeLAND, Florida—A little more than a week after a devastating crash that killed two unrestrained Leesburg children; two more Leesburg children were found unrestrained in a car that was reportedly speeding in DeLand at nearly 100 miles per hour. Shortly after 12:30 a.m. Monday, two Volusia Sheriff’s Office deputies spotted a white Chevy Impala traveling 57 miles per hour in a 45 miles per hour zone. VSO started to apprehend the car and its speed increased to 70 miles per hour before turning onto International Speedway Boulevard and accelerating to 91 miles per hour in a 50 miles per hour

LEESBURG, Florida—The third time was not the charm for a Leesburg man who passed out in a Wendy’s drive-thru in February and was arrested Wednesday for his third DUI in relation to the incident after toxicology reports came back showing he had a .378 blood alcohol content—more than four times the legal limit. On Feb. 26, shortly after midnight, Leesburg Police responded to Wendy’s, 914 North 14th Street to assist EMS with an unresponsive driver in the drive-thru. When officers arrived, they found Reddick Williams III, unresponsive in the driver’s seat of the grey Hyundai, that was on and in

LEESBURG, Florida—A 77-year-old Leesburg man was killed Tuesday after he crashed into a tree at a local pharmacy, according to Leesburg Police Capt. Joe Iozzi. The man was driving a 2004 Honda Civic eastbound on State Road 44 shortly before 2 p.m. Tuesday, when he left the roadway for an unknown reason and crashed into a tree at Walgreens, 901 South 14th Street. The man was transported to UF Health Leesburg and later airlifted to a trauma center, where he succumbed to his injuries. The man’s identity has not been released pending notification of next of kin, Iozzi said. No

LEESBURG, Florida—A daycare inspector is behind bars and facing 11 counts of possessing child pornography after his wife discovered his stash and turned him in, according to an arrest affidavit. Keith Alan Wilkins, 61, is in the Lake County Jail on $55,000 bond after the Lake County Sheriff’s Office searched his home acting on the tip from his wife. According to the affidavit, Wilkins’ wife discovered her husband pleasuring himself last month and “decided to look around,” she wrote in a statement to LCSO. She found a thumb drive containing child pornography in a drawer and found a bag in

LEESBURG, Florida—A 34-time convicted felon has been arrested in a baseball bat attack that sent a man to the hospital in December. According to a probable cause affidavit, Leesburg Police responded to UF Health Leesburg on Dec. 13 to meet with victim who told them he was in the 2100 block of Harlem Avenue when a man he knew as “Hollywood Swag,” approached him. He said, “Hollywood Swag,” identified several months later as Rodney Lamar Woods, had made numerous attempts to fight him and he was trying to avoid it. The victim started to walk away, and Woods started running

LEESBURG, Florida—A man who admitted to police he stabbed a woman with a machete last week because he was tired of her “(expletive) talking,” is being held in the Lake County Jail on $10,000 bond. Leesburg Police responded to the city’s bicycle trail near the 900 block of Stinson Street on a report of a stabbing, shortly before 10 a.m. Feb. 18. The victim told police she was stabbed with a machete by Kenneth Eugene Hicks, 42, of Eustis, during an argument over ongoing issues and her refusal to allow him to use her illegal drugs, according to an arrest

LEESBURG, Florida—A 22-year-old Leesburg man is facing a slew of charges after shooting at his sister, threatening a Leesburg Police officer, and battering another Sunday evening, according to an arrest affidavit. Leesburg Police responded to a home on Baker Street on a report of a shooting around 6 p.m. Sunday. When they arrived, Anthony M. Jones, 22, was in the front yard arguing with multiple people, according to an arrest affidavit. Two people were reportedly yelling at Jones for shooting at his sister and LPD immediately detained Jones, who told them they would not find the firearms or the casings,

LEESBURG, Florida—The Lake County Sheriff’s Office has identified one of the people killed in Leesburg Wednesday morning. Jammy Casteel, 41, was found shot on the front porch of his home at 804 Montclair Road around 4:30 a.m. Wednesday, LCSO Lt. John Herrell said. LCSO responded to a report of a shooting and found Casteel and a second person dead in the home. Casteel, who lived at the home, was transported to UF Health Leesburg, where he succumbed to his injuries. At press time, LCSO had not identified the second person, Herrell said. “This was not a random act of violence.

LEESBURG, Florida—An emergency room doctor at UF Health Leesburg was arrested Wednesday for hitting his patient in the face multiple times. Dr. Onyekachi Nwabuko, 44, went to the victim’s room to assess her for intubation, and believed she was faking her condition, according to Leesburg Police Lt. Scott Mack. A witness told Leesburg Police Nwabuko struck the victim with her own left hand multiple times while the victim actively resisted, the witness said. Nwabuko then left the room and came back two more times and struck the victim multiple times on each visit. Another witness told police they could hear

LEESBURG, Florida—Two people were killed in a single-vehicle crash into a retention pond early Wednesday morning, according to Leesburg Police Department Lt. Scott Mack. LPD responded to the crash near the intersection of U.S. Highway 27 and U.S Highway 441 at 4:04 a.m. and found 2018 Hyundai passenger car in the retention pond. Tristan Pope, 22, of Eagle, Idaho, who was driving, and Cody Giovanetti, 28, of Boise, Idaho were both pronounced dead on the scene. The preliminary investigation revealed Pope was driving north on U.S. 27, lost control of the Hyundai, left the roadway and entered the pond. The

LEESBURG, Florida—A Leesburg High School student was arrested Friday after he was found with a loaded gun in his backpack, according to an arrest affidavit. Acting on a tip, an LHS school resource officer searched the backpack of Jamonte J’Quan Chambliss, 18, around 8:45 a.m. Friday and found a small black Nike bag; inside that bag the SRO found a loaded 9mm handgun. The gun was not reported stolen. Chambliss was arrested for carrying a concealed firearm and possession of a firearm on school grounds. He was transported to the Lake County Jail where he is being held on $4,000

LEESBURG, Florida—A man was airlifted to Orlando Regional Medical Center after being shot by his neighbor around 7:10 p.m. Thursday night, according to Leesburg Police Department. LPD responded to a report of a shooting in the 2100 block of Mara Court and found Anthony Craig Stevenson, 40, suffering from wounds to his face, neck and chest consistent with bird shot, LPD Lt. Scott Mack said in a press release. During the on-scene investigation, LPD found that Stevenson was shot by his neighbor, Lloyd Donnell Brown, 67, in a dispute over borrowed money, according to Mack. Police located Brown, and he

LEESBURG, Florida—The person Leesburg Police say shot a man multiple times Friday and killed him has been arrested. Sixteen-year-old Mileik Janon Le’Shun Rose was arrested Wednesday by Leesburg Police with the help of Ocala Police Department at a home in Ocala, LPD Lt. Scott Mack said in a press release. Rose is facing charge of first degree murder and other weapons related offenses, Mack said. Tyshaun Oneal Robinson, 28, of Leesburg, was found on Waitman Avenue suffering multiple gunshot wounds around 11 p.m. Friday by LPD after receiving a report of a shooting, Mack said last week. Police performed life-saving

LEESBURG, Florida—Leesburg Police Department has identified the man who was found shot multiple times Friday night. Tyshaun Oneal Robinson, 28, of Leesburg, was found on Waitman Avenue suffering multiple gunshot wounds around 11 p.m. by LPD after receiving a report of a shooting, LPD Lt. Scott Mack said. Police performed life-saving efforts on Robinson, and he was transported by ground to UF Health Leesburg Hospital. He was later transported to Ocala Regional Medical Center, where he died. Dozens of social posts could be found over the weekend by Robinson’s friends and family expressing their sorrow. According to a Facebook post,

LEESBURG, Florida—Leesburg Police Department is investigating a homicide that occurred late Friday night. LPD responded to the 2200 block of Waitman Avenue on reports of a shooting at 11:09 p.m. and found an individual lying in the road who had been shot multiple times, LPD Lt. Scott Mack said in a press release. Police performed life-saving efforts and the victim was transported by ground to UF Health Leesburg Hospital and later transported to Ocala Regional Medical Center, where the victim died. The victim’s identity has not been released.   If you have information, call LPD at 352-787-2121 on Crimeline at

LEESBURG, Florida—A man accused of carjacking a woman Tuesday is in the Lake County Jail on $25,000 bond. Jayson Todd Locke, 44, of Leesburg, is accused of taking a white Chevy Tahoe from a woman Tuesday while she was sitting in it, eating at Winn Dixie, 27405 U.S. Highway 27, according to an arrest affidavit. The woman told Leesburg Police she was in the parking lot near Taco Bell when a man, later identified as Locke, opened the driver’s door and demanded she give the Tahoe to him. Locke was “very agitated,” according to the victim and continued to yell

LEESBURG, Florida—A 17-year-old boy is facing charges after police say he opened fire at a busy park earlier this month. Theodore L. McNealy Jr. was arrested Sunday after he was identified by several witnesses following a shooting at Berry Park less than two weeks ago. According to a probable cause affidavit, a group of black males on foot approached a group of black males in a red Chevy Impala at the entrance to Berry Park, 2121 Johns Avenue, Leesburg shortly before 4 p.m. Jan. 8. The group on foot brandished pistols and began firing at the car, the affidavit states.

LEESBURG, Florida—A second suspect sought in the murder of a Leesburg man last year has been arrested, according to Leesburg Police Department. Jeron Lee Johnson, 32, was arrested Friday by local authorities and U.S. Marshals in Ohio, LPD Lt. Scott Mack said in a press release; Johnson is currently awaiting extradition back to Lake County, Mack said. On Aug. 4, 2021, LPD responded to a report of a shooting victim in the 1000 block of West Line Street, shortly before midnight and found Michael Pettis, 34, dead. Police searched the area for suspects but did not find anyone, LPD Capt.

KEY WEST, Florida— A Leesburg man turned himself in to authorities Thursday for vandalizing the Southernmost Point buoy in Key West on New Year’s Day. Around 3:30 a.m. Saturday, Key West Police and Key West Fire responded to a fire at the buoy, according to a Facebook post by Key West Police Department. They found the remnants of a charred Christmas tree and found the fire “left a burned scar three feet wide and seven feet tall,” causing more than $5,000 in damage. Two suspects, later identified as David Brendan Perkins, 22, of Leesburg and Skyler Rae Jacobson, 21, of

LEESBURG, Florida—A Leesburg High School student accused of opening fire at Berry Park Thanksgiving weekend was arrested Tuesday and is facing 34 felony and two misdemeanor charges, according to an arrest affidavit. On Nov. 28, around 5:45 p.m., Leesburg Police Department responded to Berry Park, 2121 Johns Avenue in reference to a disturbance, battery and shooting. LPD arrived at the park to find more than two dozen people and most refused to speak with officers, according to the affidavit. One woman, who refused to give her name, came forward and said the altercation began over a black female driving a

LEESBURG, Florida—A motorcyclist has died following a crash Monday morning in Leesburg. Tony Sammons, 52, of Wildwood was traveling north on U.S. Highway 27 shortly before 10:45 a.m. Monday when he collided with a 2017 Buick SUV being driven by 79-year-old Nancy Mitchell of Summerfield. Mitchell was southbound on U.S. Highway 27 and attempted to make a left turn onto Citizens Boulevard when Sammons, who was riding a 2004 Harley Davidson motorcycle, struck the passenger side of the SUV as she made her turn, Leesburg Police Capt. Joe Iozzi said in a press release. Sammons sustained serious injuries and was

VOLUSIA, COUNTY, Florida—A head-crash killed a DeLand woman and sent two people to the hospital, including a Leesburg man, shortly after 7:15 a.m. Sunday, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. The 26-year-old Leesburg man and his 26-year-old passenger of DeLand were southbound in an SUV on North Kepler Road near Periwinkle Avenue when he traveled into the northbound lanes and struck another SUV head-on, killing a 47-year-old DeLand woman; she was wearing her seatbelt. FHP Lt. Kim Montes said in a press release.   The Leesburg man and his passenger were not wearing their seatbelts and were transported to Halifax