ALVA Woodpeckers build home in Alva woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner arrested for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
ALVA Woodpeckers build home in Alva woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner arrested for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
LABELLE, Fla. – Accusations of a cover up involving a teenage girl, a man facing federal prison and a vehicle mirror has the Florida Department of Law Enforcement looking into how Hendry County Sheriff Steve Whidden handled the case, a WINK News investigation has unveiled. A 15-year-old girl was walking to a bus stop along Nobles Road in LaBelle on Sept. 11, 2015 when she was hit from behind by the passenger side view mirror of a white Ford F-150. She was knocked into a ditch. The truck kept going. The girl, bruised and swollen, still made it to school. A school nurse contacted her mother, who took her to a hospital. Then the mother contacted the Hendry County Sheriff’s Office. “The deputy who was initially assigned to the case did an excellent job of investigating the case for leaving the scene with personal injury, which is a felony in the state of Florida,” said Steve Ramunni, a Fort Myers attorney who is representing the teenager. She is suing the driver. Hendry County Deputy Vernon Speak, in an Aug. 10 deposition, testified that he began an extensive investigation into the hit and run case. A week after the incident, he went back to the scene. It was there that he saw a dirty white truck with a brand new passenger’s side mirror. The phone call Speak initiated a traffic stop. The driver, Richard Carlton Smith of LaBelle, called Whidden while Speak checked his license. “I did receive a phone call from this guy,” Whidden said in an interview with WINK News. “He said, ‘Hey, they’re trying to charge me, what’s going on?'” Smith, 58, said he thought he hit a mailbox or a garbage can, Whidden said. “He said when he reached his destination, he saw that his mirror was broke,” Whidden said. “He said, ‘Oh no, I must have hit something.’ He backtracked, he went all the way back. He said the only thing he saw on the road at that time was a school bus leaving, which led us to believe that he did come back. I said, ‘I don’t think it meets the elements of the crime.’ I said, ‘However, I said take everybody’s statements and lets forward it to the State Attorney’s Office.” Ramunni was surprised the phone call even happened. “To feel comfortable enough to call this guy at 6:45 in the morning is something like I’ve never seen before,” he said. “(Whidden) should have said ‘Okay. There’s really nothing I can do for you at this point.’” Two weeks before the incident, Smith was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit offenses and defraud the United States. He was sentenced to 41 months in federal prison, and along with two others, must repay over $23 million to the federal government. The Nobles Road incident happened prior to Smith reporting to prison. Whidden described Smith as an acquaintance who he has seen at a few restaurants, adding that he didn’t know Smith was about to go to prison. “I don’t even know where he lives,” he said. Speak, the deputy, let Smith go on the condition that he would stop by the sheriff’s office after work that day. Smith never showed up. Passing blame Speak, in his deposition, said he discussed the case with Whidden the next day. “He’s a good guy,” said Whidden, according to Speak. “He’s in a bad position. He’s about to go to prison. There’s no reason to go after this case.” Whidden claims otherwise. “I guess I’m gonna have to talk with the deputy because that did not happen,” he said. “That absolutely did not happen…why, why would we forward it to the State Attorney’s Office if I told him that? If I told him that, there would be nothing sent to the State Attorney’s Office.” A sheriff’s office lieutenant wrote in a report the next day that the case was closed and that all leads were exhausted, but Whidden said the department forwarded the case anyway. Web extra: Deputy Speak’s first incident report related to the hit and run case. “I told the deputy, ‘No, do the report, take everybody’s statements, let’s let the state attorney’s (office) decide because I’m not sure if it meets the elements,’ and that’s what we did,” Whitten said. “We did everything by the book.” But state prosecutors tell a different story of how they found out about the case. “The Hendry County Sheriff’s Office did not send us anything,” the office said in a statement. “We, the State Attorney’s Office, learned about the matter from a private attorney – Steve Ramunni. We then contacted the sheriff’s office and requested all materials it had on the incident.” Whidden, while shaking his head, said that’s not true. “Well, I’m not buying it…it sounds like the state is trying to throw blame elsewhere,” he said. Web extra: Sheriff Whidden’s full interview: Submit Copyright ©2024 Fort Myers Broadcasting. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without prior written consent.