London Sir Dangerous, 29, was convicted by a Polk County Jury of Kidnapping, Tampering with a Witness and several other charges. Sir Dangerous and the victim got into a verbal argument at the Briarcrest Apartments in Winter Haven that quickly escalated. The defendant grabbed the victim’s car keys and entered into the vehicle with her. He began punching the passenger side window and windshield causing each one to crack. When the victim tried to leave, the defendant pulled out a box cutter and made threats that he would beat her up if she left. Fearing for her life, the victim pulled back into her apartment building. The defendant jumped out and got into the victim’s other vehicle and began following her. The defendant struck the victim’s vehicle several times; causing extensive damage before she was able to arrive at the Winter Haven Police Department. The defendant faces 30 years Florida State Prison and possibly Life when sentenced. State Attorney Brian Haas thanks Assistant State Attorney Conner Hilgenfeldt and the Winter Haven Police Department for their work on this case.

Ivan Sanders was found guilty and sentenced to Life in prison for First Degree Murder and Aggravated Child Abuse. Sanders was watching the victim while her mother was at work. Sanders threw the child across the room; hitting her head on the floor, causing her skull to fracture and brain to swell. Sanders delayed taking the victim to the hospital, after trying to revive her in a bath. In addition to the skull fracture, the victim had severe bruising on her entire body and a burn on her hand. State Attorney Brian Haas thanks Assistant State Attorney John Kromholz and the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office for their persistence in pursuing justice in this case. Sanders will never be released from prison.

A Polk County, Florida 11 year-old child was victimized by a 35 year-old women from Indiana after they met playing the game Fortnite.  In late 2020, Tabitha Palmer began chatting with the child through the online game.  Palmer knew that the child was 11 years-old.  The initial conversations were fairly basic, but over time, Palmer groomed the victim into feeling very comfortable talking to her.  Palmer informed the victim that she was married and had a child of her own.  She convinced the child to begin communicating with her through Discord, an online messaging app.  The defendant instructed the victim to delete their conversations.  Palmer sent numerous lewd photos of herself and convinced the child to do the same.  She also instructed him to engage in lewd acts while on video chats with her.  More than 14,300 Discord messages were exchanged between the woman and the child.  These activities continued for many months.  The defendant even discussed moving to Florida and getting a job close to the victim. Thankfully, the child’s parent eventually discovered some of the conversations.

The Lakeland Police Department conducted an investigation and arrested the woman.  Earlier this year, the woman pled guilty to multiple charges and was sentenced to 13 years in Florida State Prison.  She was designated as a Sexual Offender.  She will serve an additional 15 years of Sexual Offender Probation following her release from prison.  The sentence was approved by the parent of the child in an effort to avoid the child having to testify in court during a trial.

This case is an important reminder to parents of children who play any type of online game.  The threat is real and can come from anywhere.   State Attorney Brian Haas is grateful to the Lakeland Police Department and Assistant State Attorney Tim Coleman for their hard work and dedication in this case.