Tired of traffic trouble spots? Now is your chance to weigh in on changesPunta Gorda Council discusses proposed new $16M City Hall
FORT MYERS Tired of traffic trouble spots? Now is your chance to weigh in on changes Voice your thoughts on what Southwest Florida roads need improving.
Punta Gorda Council discusses proposed new $16M City Hall Punta Gorda City Council got sticker shock Dec. 4 when they learned that a new City Hall building with a design chosen by former council members would cost close to $16 million.
Department of Labor seeks to distribute $4.7M in wages owed to Florida workers With year-end approaching, the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor is working to return $4,737,110 in wages it recovered to almost 7,500 Florida workers who earned them.
GLADES COUNTY Florida panther struck by vehicle in Glades County; 32nd death in 2024 A 7-to-8-month-old panther was killed by a vehicle in Glades County, increasing the death toll of the endangered species to 32 for 2024.
FORT MYERS Commissioner Hamman: Caloosahatchee bridge project to be completed soon The pedestrian walkway project on the Caloosahatchee bridge in Fort Myers is on schedule and is expected to be completed before Christmas Day.
WINK NEWS Citizens Property Insurance passes important milestone in depopulation program This is a sign our insurance crisis in Florida is recovering. Citizens, designed to be Floridian’s last resort insurer, is shrinking.
WINK NEWS Expect warmer temperatures for your Thursday plans The Weather Authority is tracking increased temperatures. Thursday is in the 50s, and the warming trend is continuing into the weekend.
WINK NEWS Smoke from prescribed burns this Thursday The Weather Authority is tracking smoke in the air Thursday morning. If you notice smoke, it’s likely from recent prescribed burns.
LEHIGH ACRES Firefighters break open submerged car in Lehigh Acres Firefighters break open a submerged car and appear to rescue someone stuck inside in Lehigh Acres overnight.
FORT MYERS Stem donor meets recipient at Florida Gulf Coast University An FGCU student is giving the gift of life this holiday season. FGCU senior Zoe Horowitz met the person who received her stem cell donation.
PORT CHARLOTTE CCSO ‘Shop with a Cop’ event spreads holiday cheer Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office deputies spent time helping kids pick out gifts for their families during the annual Shop with a Cop event.
CLEWISTON Caught on camera: Explosion in hotel parking lot in Clewiston There was an explosion in the parking lot of a Holiday Inn in Clewiston on Wednesday.
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda leaders outline plans for Gilchrist Park repairs Gilchrist Park is closed, and Punta Gorda city leaders have been discussing possibly restoring the park.
NORTH NAPLES Airman surprises 6-year-old daughter at school for the holidays after ten months of service in Kuwait After almost a year of service in Kuwait, one airman came home for the holidays and surprised his daughter.
FORT MYERS Breaking down the Lee County Sheriff’s Office budget The Lee County Sheriff’s Office and Sheriff Carmine Marceno have been under scrutiny since a federal investigation on potential money laundering began. Many have questioned LCSO’s spending, so we broke down the budget.
FORT MYERS Tired of traffic trouble spots? Now is your chance to weigh in on changes Voice your thoughts on what Southwest Florida roads need improving.
Punta Gorda Council discusses proposed new $16M City Hall Punta Gorda City Council got sticker shock Dec. 4 when they learned that a new City Hall building with a design chosen by former council members would cost close to $16 million.
Department of Labor seeks to distribute $4.7M in wages owed to Florida workers With year-end approaching, the Wage and Hour Division of the U.S. Department of Labor is working to return $4,737,110 in wages it recovered to almost 7,500 Florida workers who earned them.
GLADES COUNTY Florida panther struck by vehicle in Glades County; 32nd death in 2024 A 7-to-8-month-old panther was killed by a vehicle in Glades County, increasing the death toll of the endangered species to 32 for 2024.
FORT MYERS Commissioner Hamman: Caloosahatchee bridge project to be completed soon The pedestrian walkway project on the Caloosahatchee bridge in Fort Myers is on schedule and is expected to be completed before Christmas Day.
WINK NEWS Citizens Property Insurance passes important milestone in depopulation program This is a sign our insurance crisis in Florida is recovering. Citizens, designed to be Floridian’s last resort insurer, is shrinking.
WINK NEWS Expect warmer temperatures for your Thursday plans The Weather Authority is tracking increased temperatures. Thursday is in the 50s, and the warming trend is continuing into the weekend.
WINK NEWS Smoke from prescribed burns this Thursday The Weather Authority is tracking smoke in the air Thursday morning. If you notice smoke, it’s likely from recent prescribed burns.
LEHIGH ACRES Firefighters break open submerged car in Lehigh Acres Firefighters break open a submerged car and appear to rescue someone stuck inside in Lehigh Acres overnight.
FORT MYERS Stem donor meets recipient at Florida Gulf Coast University An FGCU student is giving the gift of life this holiday season. FGCU senior Zoe Horowitz met the person who received her stem cell donation.
PORT CHARLOTTE CCSO ‘Shop with a Cop’ event spreads holiday cheer Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office deputies spent time helping kids pick out gifts for their families during the annual Shop with a Cop event.
CLEWISTON Caught on camera: Explosion in hotel parking lot in Clewiston There was an explosion in the parking lot of a Holiday Inn in Clewiston on Wednesday.
PUNTA GORDA Punta Gorda leaders outline plans for Gilchrist Park repairs Gilchrist Park is closed, and Punta Gorda city leaders have been discussing possibly restoring the park.
NORTH NAPLES Airman surprises 6-year-old daughter at school for the holidays after ten months of service in Kuwait After almost a year of service in Kuwait, one airman came home for the holidays and surprised his daughter.
FORT MYERS Breaking down the Lee County Sheriff’s Office budget The Lee County Sheriff’s Office and Sheriff Carmine Marceno have been under scrutiny since a federal investigation on potential money laundering began. Many have questioned LCSO’s spending, so we broke down the budget.
NAPLES, Fla.- Bill Oliver is a man with a heavy heart. He runs a small medical supply company and teaches martial arts three days a week at Aiki Ju-jitsu in Naples. In an exclusive interview with WINK News, Oliver is coming clean about a lie he says he’s been living for the past 15 years. “It’s beyond shameful what I did, it’s absolutely wrong,” Oliver told WINK News. Until recently, the website promoting his martial arts studio stated Oliver was a former U.S. Army Special Forces operator. In 2001 he did an interview with a South Carolina newspaper claiming to be an Army Ranger. Oliver’s military records show he was in the Army, active from 1979-1982, but as a masonry specialist. “I didn’t see any combat, I didn’t deploy, I didn’t do any specialized training or special forces type stuff whatsoever,” said Oliver. Oliver says the lie started when a student saw his Army jump photo and assumed he was a Ranger, and Oliver went along with it. “Then it got to a place where quite honestly I felt comfortable, you know, and I started taking on this lie. And in some small ways almost believing it.” Oliver says he kept the lie going for years out of fear of rejection. Guardian Of Valor, a national organization dedicated to outing people who lie about their military service, published a scathing article on Oliver December 14 after a months long investigation. “The problem is is the people were attending his dojo based on his claim, they thought he was some Special Forces/Delta Force guy that could give them great training. He gained money off of making false claims and being something he wasn’t,” said Anthony Anderson of Guardian Of Valor. Oliver says he charges his students $100 a month for lessons, and doesn’t make a profit. He claims all the money goes right to keeping the dojo open. After getting word the article would be published, Oliver took to Facebook, confessing his lies. “I got pounded. It was pretty crushing. I got you know a ton of emails telling me what a piece of crap I was, what a low life and how disgusting. And I get it, I totally get it and I deserve every bit of it,” said Oliver. Oliver’s students are sticking by his side. “It was shocking at first… but it didn’t change my opinion about the man, the person that I’ve come to love, the person that I’ve come to know,” said student Jammie Stockner. “I’m just real thankful, I’m just real thankful that some people care about me,” said Oliver. Florida does have a Stolen Valor law, but it’s restricted to those who lie about receiving certain military medals. At this time Oliver is not facing any criminal charges.