Sebring police have arrested a 16-year-old boy in connection with Tuesday night’s deadly shooting on Melady Avenue. Officers found 20-year-old William Stall of Avon Park suffering from a gunshot wound inside his vehicle. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators say the shooting appears to have happened during a drug deal. The juvenile is charged with robbery and murder during the commission of a robbery. The investigation remains ongoing.
The Highlands County Sheriff’s Office SWAT Team responded to a barricaded suspect Tuesday night on State Road 17 in Sebring. Fifty-six-year-old Noel Suarez Valdes was wanted on a federal warrant and ran inside his home when deputies arrived. After several hours of negotiations, the SWAT team moved in and used an armored vehicle to breach the front door. Valdes surrendered and was arrested on the federal warrant, along with additional charges including obstruction and failing to register as a convicted felon.
The City of Sebring’s foreclosure lawsuit against the Family Dollar on North Ridgewood Drive appears headed for dismissal. The city sued the property owner over maintenance and landscaping violations and more than $208,000 in fines. But the city’s attorney failed to appear at a recent case management conference. The attorney has since filed to voluntarily dismiss the case with prejudice. A judge has ordered the matter formally dismissed or set for a status hearing.
An Arcadia man will spend the rest of his life in prison for a 2021 convenience store killing. Reginald Reynard Roberts Junior was sentenced Monday after being convicted of first-degree murder and robbery with a firearm. Prosecutors say Roberts shot and killed Fiesta Food Mart owner S.M. Saleh Ahmed in May 2021, then took money from an open safe. Investigators linked Roberts to the crime through a thumbprint found on a box inside the safe, forensic evidence and witness testimony. His life sentence took effect Monday.