WINTER HAVEN, Fla. – Hernando Cortez Thompson Jr., a 39-year-old Orlando man identified by prosecutors as the leader of the Bloods-affiliated “Sex Money Murder” gang in Florida, was convicted this week on all charges following a Polk County jury trial, state officials announced. The verdict, delivered after about an hourContinue Reading
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Devon Oliver, 18, of Gainesville, Florida, has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of possession of a firearm with a removed serial number, officials announced. The indictment was announced by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida. Oliver appearedContinue Reading
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – A federal grand jury has indicted Xin Liu, 40, of Apopka, Florida, on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, U.S. authorities announced. The indictment was revealed by John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida. Liu appeared for arraignment before U.S. MagistrateContinue Reading
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – 24-year-old Eric Joel Valdez of Clay County has pleaded guilty to theft of a firearm from a federal firearms licensee (FFL), officials announced. Valdez faces up to 10 years in federal prison and restitution to the victim, with sentencing scheduled for March 18, 2026. Valdez, who isContinue Reading
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – John Kuhlmann, 79, of Daytona Beach, has been sentenced to pay $1,005,313 in restitution and serve three years of supervised release for operating an unlicensed money transmitting business tied to a nationwide computer tech support fraud scheme that targeted over 300 elderly victims. According to court records,Continue Reading
Clinton Walker has been sentenced to five years and two months in prison, followed by five years of probation, after entering no-contest pleas to Aggravated Rioting and Conspiracy to Commit Aggravated Rioting. The sentence includes strict probation conditions: no contact with Mongols Outlaw Motorcycle Gang members, surrender of all gangContinue Reading
On Tuesday, December 9th, Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno joined State Attorney Amira Fox to announce grand jury indictments in two major homicide cases. Yohani Gonzalez de Lazaro has been indicted on two counts of First Degree Murder and two counts of First Degree Attempted Murder stemming from a 2023Continue Reading
COLLIER COUNTY, FL – A 30-year-old Collier County woman has been sentenced to 25 years in state prison for her role in the fentanyl overdose death of a local man last year. At a hearing today, Michaelle Jean Haire pleaded no contest to manslaughter and sale or delivery of fentanyl.Continue Reading
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Devonte Smokes, 30, of Volusia County, was sentenced this week to 30 years in prison following a no-contest plea to multiple charges, including Second-Degree Murder. The sentence stems from a May 31, 2023, incident in which Smokes was involved in a shooting that claimed the lifeContinue Reading
Haralson County, Florida – Tyrone Daniel was sentenced on December 2, 2025, to Life Without the Possibility of Parole plus 50 years following his conviction on charges of Rape, Incest, and Child Molestation. The sentencing comes after a Haralson County jury found Daniel guilty in September 2025. The case originatedContinue Reading
