News Update for 01/16/25

The precautionary BOIL WATER NOTICE issued on Monday January 13th, for the west side of 27 at Thunderbird Road going north to Schumacher Road and the east side of 27 at Thunderbird Road going north to Whisper Lake Blvd. was rescinded late Wednesday afternoon. Although water was restored quickly to the areas affected after a break in a water main- the City of Sebring issued the notice while necessary repairs were made and a bacteriological survey was conducted. Satisfactory results of that survey came in late yesterday afternoon and officials have now deemed the water safe to drink.

The Highlands County Citizens with Voices will hold their annual “Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day Parade” on Monday, January 20th 2025 from 12:00 PM until approximately 1:00 PM. The planned route will commence on East Center Avenue and will include marching downtown Sebring around the circle and then ending in the open field between Walker and Washington Avenues. Residents are reminded that several local road closures will be associated with event and will limit vehicular traffic in the downtown Sebring area, with some of those road closures starting at 11:00AM. A majority of the road closures will open back up at 1:00PM.

A Hardee County woman was found not guilty of aggravated manslaughter Wednesday, but has been found guilty of the lesser charge of leaving a child unattended in a vehicle for more than 15 minutes. Tracey Nix left her 7-month-old granddaughter in a hot car, where the baby died more than two years ago. This is the second grandchild to die under Nix’s care. Tracey’s attorney, William Fletcher, says they plan on appealing the conviction. Nix is facing up to 6 years in prison, but her defense team said they will file a motion to go below the sentencing guidelines. A sentencing hearing has been set for April 3.

Four people are facing charges in connection to an organized retail fraud ring in Polk County. The sheriff’s office launched an investigation about a year ago after two Target employees in North Lakeland were flagged for giving out large discounts. Authorities say the suspects were fraudulently using employee discount codes to buy high-end electronics before sending them to China. Sheriff Grady Judd says in exchange for the items, someone was shipping them counterfeit items that the suspects would try to return to Target. The group is also accused of securing gift cards through illegal phone scams that impacted roughly a dozen victims. Investigators say the store lost more than 170-thousand dollars during the scheme.

Two men were arrested Monday in Arcadia for allegedly trespassing onto a farm and fishing on the property, snagging a fish reportedly worth $1,000. Alex Figueredo Jr., and Kaleb Lee Harmon, were both charged with burglary, trespassing and grand theft. After an extra patrol was requested for the farm- a deputy reported he saw an unattended vehicle on a nearby street with visible fishing gear as well as a container near the property fence line that contained a 28-inch-long Amazonian arapaima fish. When the two men returned to the vehicle, the deputy confronted them, noting that both men were carrying fishing poles and other gear. A greenhouse housing the fish had signs of being broken into on the property. When asked about the fish, both men, admitted to catching the fish in the greenhouse and said they wanted only to take a picture with it. Both were booked into DeSoto County Jail and are now out on $3000 bonds.

Governor Ron DeSantis is calling on universal support for President-elect Trump in order to put an end to the nation’s illegal immigration crisis. That’s what the governor talked about while at the Polk County Sheriff’s Office Wednesday. DeSantis stood alongside law enforcement, saying there has been no issue higher on the radar than illegal immigration and there needs to be all hands-on deck. He says a state immigration officer will be appointed to oversee the issue. Sheriff Grady Judd believes Florida needs to set an example for other states in supporting Trump on the crackdown.

The Florida animal sanctuary featured in the Netflix series Tiger King is being sold off. Tampa’s Big Cat Rescue finalized the sale last month of a large part of the Citrus Park-area property for nearly 20-million dollars. The refuge announced it was closing in 2023 and moving its animals to a sanctuary in Arkansas. Big Cat Rescue co-owner Howard Baskin says proceeds from the sale will be used for world-wide projects to save wild cats from extinction. New townhomes and apartments are planned for the site.

Some Allegiant Airline pilots are going public with their demands for better pay. About 30 pilots with Teamsters Local 2118 walked a picket line yesterday at Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport. They formed a picket line last month, too. A union rep says the pilots want pay that’s more in line with what other airlines pay. The union has not called for a strike, but a union official says demonstrations will continue. Allegiant Airlines says it has offered a competitive package, but the union has not made counter proposals on the major outstanding economic items in over two years.