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Recent Press Releases
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JURY VERDICT: Lakeland man guilty of attempted murder
/in SAO10 Blog /by Kaitlyn PearsonWhen law enforcement found Chauncey Rollins, he was lying in a pool of his own blood. He’d been shot in the back of the head and was mumbling incoherently. There was a spent shell casing on the ground next to him. A Lakeland Police officer crouched down next to Rollins and asked who shot him: […]
JURY VERDICT: Lake Wales man convicted of attempting to murder police officers
/in SAO10 Blog /by Kaitlyn PearsonJohn Goepferich lured Lake Wales Police Officers to his house and intended to kill them. Upon their arrival, Goepferich immediately began shooting at them – unloading more than 25 rounds in a 30-minute shootout that would injure two officers. After about seven hours of deliberation Friday, jurors found Goepferich guilty of six counts of attempted […]
SENTENCING UPDATE: Man gets 10 years for striking, killing bicyclist
/in SAO10 Blog /by Kaitlyn PearsonByers Levy was riding his bicycle around Lake Hollingsworth on a Sunday afternoon when Ronald Akins – who had been drinking – veered across the double yellow line and into the bike lane, striking and killing Levy. Akins, 78, pled guilty to DUI manslaughter on Jan. 13 and tried to convince Judge Durden at sentencing […]
JURY VERDICT: Broxterman convicted of faking PhD
/in SAO10 Blog /by Kaitlyn PearsonAfter about an hour of deliberation, David Broxterman, 57, was found guilty of scheme to defraud by a jury on Jan. 19. Broxterman, of Lakeland, lied about having a PhD in organizational management from the University of South Florida when he applied for a job as a professor at Polk State College in 2008. He […]
Haas administers oath for Polk Police Chiefs Association
/in SAO10 Blog /by Kaitlyn PearsonLAKELAND – Chief Larry Giddens, of the Lakeland Police Department, raised his right hand to be sworn in as President of the Polk County Police Chiefs Association Thursday evening by State Attorney Brian Haas. Giddens, Florida Polytechnic Police Chief Richard Holland, Auburndale Police Chief Chris Nelson and five other directors were sworn in at the […]
SENTENCING UPDATE: Winter Haven man gets 20 years
/in SAO10 Blog /by Kaitlyn PearsonVincent Madhavath was sentenced to 20 years in prison Friday for hiring a hitman to kill his wife. Madhavath, 45, was convicted of attempted first-degree murder and solicitation to commit first-degree murder by a jury on Sept. 29, 2016, after a three-day trial in front of Judge Yancey. Following his 20-year sentence, Yancey also gave […]