Southbound lanes of U.S. 41 near Bonita Beach shut down due to crash1 injured in Fort Myers auto shop fire
Southbound lanes of U.S. 41 near Bonita Beach shut down due to crash According to the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, all SB lanes and two northbound lanes of U.S. 41 near Bonita Beach are closed due to a crash.
FORT MYERS 1 injured in Fort Myers auto shop fire According to FMPD, one person is injured after two vehicles and a dumpster caught fire in an auto shop on Saturday afternoon.
Hendry County Sheriff’s Office seeks public’s help in deer poaching investigation The Hendry County Sheriff’s Office Agriculture Unit is seeking assistance from the public in its investigation into the illegal killing of approximately nine deer.
Deputy injured, suspect killed in shooting near State Road 72 in DeSoto County A suspect wanted on a child enticement charge out of Georgia was killed in a deputy-involved shooting early Saturday morning in DeSoto County.
ENGLEWOOD 1 dead in Englewood incident; authorities investigating There is an active investigation going on at the 3200 block of Smith Street in Englewood, where one person was found dead.
NAPLES Naples Winter Wine Festival kicks off to support Collier County children The Naples Winter Wine Festival, one of the largest charity wine auctions globally, is set to begin at the Ritz-Carlton in Naples on Saturday.
ESTERO Join the March to a Million Meals to combat hunger in Southwest Florida Food insecurity remains a significant issue in Southwest Florida, with one in eight adults and one in six children experiencing hunger.
NAPLES Last chance to enjoy Naples Boat Show’s yachts and waterfront fun The Naples Boat Show wraps up on Saturday, offering one last chance for visitors to explore an impressive lineup of boats, yachts, and waterfront fun.
CAPE CORAL SunSplash Waterpark hosts hiring event in Cape Coral As chilly temperatures linger, it might be hard to think about the hot, humid days of summer, but SunSplash Family Waterpark in Cape Coral is already preparing for the season.
the weather authority Cold Saturday morning, warmer afternoons on the way The Weather Authority says Southwest Florida woke up to the coldest temperatures in 3 years.
Neighbors react to deputy-involved shooting of man with machete New body camera footage shows the moment Charlotte County deputies opened fire on a man armed with a machete.
FORT MYERS 21st annual Caloosahatchee Celtic Festival underway in Fort Myers The 21st Caloosahatchee Celtic Festival is underway. Despite the colder weather, visitors are enjoying the festivities in Fort Myers.
New video shows alternate angle of I-75 multi-county chase A theft ring in Lee County led to a dramatic car chase involving Paul Fritzson, who allegedly carjacked a couple in Collier County.
Meet the kids benefiting from Naples’ charity wine festival: Kolson’s story The Naples Winter Wine Festival, known as the largest charity wine auction in the world, kicked off on Friday with a focus on benefiting children in Collier County.
Iona Firefighter rescues homeowner from blaze A firefighter bravely rescued a homeowner from a burning house on Whiskey Creek Drive.
Southbound lanes of U.S. 41 near Bonita Beach shut down due to crash According to the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, all SB lanes and two northbound lanes of U.S. 41 near Bonita Beach are closed due to a crash.
FORT MYERS 1 injured in Fort Myers auto shop fire According to FMPD, one person is injured after two vehicles and a dumpster caught fire in an auto shop on Saturday afternoon.
Hendry County Sheriff’s Office seeks public’s help in deer poaching investigation The Hendry County Sheriff’s Office Agriculture Unit is seeking assistance from the public in its investigation into the illegal killing of approximately nine deer.
Deputy injured, suspect killed in shooting near State Road 72 in DeSoto County A suspect wanted on a child enticement charge out of Georgia was killed in a deputy-involved shooting early Saturday morning in DeSoto County.
ENGLEWOOD 1 dead in Englewood incident; authorities investigating There is an active investigation going on at the 3200 block of Smith Street in Englewood, where one person was found dead.
NAPLES Naples Winter Wine Festival kicks off to support Collier County children The Naples Winter Wine Festival, one of the largest charity wine auctions globally, is set to begin at the Ritz-Carlton in Naples on Saturday.
ESTERO Join the March to a Million Meals to combat hunger in Southwest Florida Food insecurity remains a significant issue in Southwest Florida, with one in eight adults and one in six children experiencing hunger.
NAPLES Last chance to enjoy Naples Boat Show’s yachts and waterfront fun The Naples Boat Show wraps up on Saturday, offering one last chance for visitors to explore an impressive lineup of boats, yachts, and waterfront fun.
CAPE CORAL SunSplash Waterpark hosts hiring event in Cape Coral As chilly temperatures linger, it might be hard to think about the hot, humid days of summer, but SunSplash Family Waterpark in Cape Coral is already preparing for the season.
the weather authority Cold Saturday morning, warmer afternoons on the way The Weather Authority says Southwest Florida woke up to the coldest temperatures in 3 years.
Neighbors react to deputy-involved shooting of man with machete New body camera footage shows the moment Charlotte County deputies opened fire on a man armed with a machete.
FORT MYERS 21st annual Caloosahatchee Celtic Festival underway in Fort Myers The 21st Caloosahatchee Celtic Festival is underway. Despite the colder weather, visitors are enjoying the festivities in Fort Myers.
New video shows alternate angle of I-75 multi-county chase A theft ring in Lee County led to a dramatic car chase involving Paul Fritzson, who allegedly carjacked a couple in Collier County.
Meet the kids benefiting from Naples’ charity wine festival: Kolson’s story The Naples Winter Wine Festival, known as the largest charity wine auction in the world, kicked off on Friday with a focus on benefiting children in Collier County.
Iona Firefighter rescues homeowner from blaze A firefighter bravely rescued a homeowner from a burning house on Whiskey Creek Drive.
HENDRY COUNTY, Fla.- A former Hendry County monkey farm worker says what he was asked to do was so horrific, he had to quit his job after only two days. “When I got involved in that, I knew I just couldn’t live with myself if I was going to be doing that,” former Primate Products vet tech David Roebuck said. “I couldn’t do it.” Roebuck says workers at Primate Products’ “Panther Tracks” facility located near Immokalee were regularly told to perform C-section abortions on pregnant female monkeys, remove the dead fetus, then package it for sale to buyers. Roebuck said milk was then extracted from the female cytomologus monkeys using human breast pumps, which was also sold to laboratories. “The internal organs were then taken from the fetuses and freeze dried and sold to pharmaceutical companies,” Roebuck said. “After that was done, the mothers were still lactating so they collected their milk and sold them to another pharmaceutical company” Roebuck said Primate Products is much more than just a breeder. He said it is a research facility. “The point of it is to make money,” Roebuck said. “They had financial contracts with pharmaceutical companies, to provide a certain amount of milk for a certain amount of money.” Exclusive documents obtained by WINK News corroborate the practice. The documents are allegedly a part of Primate Products standard operating procedure manual which instructs the person performing the surgery how to slice open the primate and remove the fetus, then freeze organs should the female monkey die in the process. “If you know what a deep freezer looks like, there were two of those, filled with parts,” Roebuck said. “Internal organs, that had to be taken out of the fetuses surgically.” This new insight into the alleged practices of Primate Products comes only days before Hendry County officials said they will decide if it will take action against the company for possibly operating outside of the perimeter of its zoning. The more than 600-acre property is agriculturally zoned for animal husbandry. Hendry County administrator Charles Chapman told WINK News last week if the company is conducting animal tests or experiments it is violating the agricultural zoning code. Chapman said he had no idea the company was doing anything but breeding monkeys until an exclusive WINK News investigation revealed USDA documents detailing hundreds of tests and experiments were performed at the facility. Primate Products representative Ed Mashburn told county officials there was no testing or experiments happening at the facility during a 2012 development-permit pre-application meeting. Primate Products president Thomas Rowell tells WINK News the company’s practices are “hardly” testing or research, and claims there is a reason for the procedures. “The idea being we can provide tissue from one animal to be used for in-vitro research,” Rowell wrote in an email response. “Possibly eliminating the need to use hundred[s] of live animals for in-vivo research in the future.” Rowell emailed the following statement: “Primate Products provides bioproducts for use in biomedical research consistent with the guiding principles of humane use of animals in scientific research which we refer to the 3 R’s: replace, reduce, and refine.” Rowell told WINK News last week that tests reported to the USDA were cases of animal “usage.” He said usage means obtaining bodily fluids, including spinal fluid and blood from the monkeys, then selling the samples to laboratories. Rowell did not mention C-section abortions or fetus removal. Primate Products expanded its facility over the past two years and is leasing some of its newly-built property to foreign monkey breeder BioCulture, Hendry County officials confirmed. Hendry County officials did not return calls prior to broadcast or publication of this report Monday evening. Primate Products has been operating in Hendry County for more than 15 years and is the county’s largest and oldest monkey farm.