Students react to threat made at Florida Gulf Coast UniversityMissing and endangered boy found in Lehigh Acres
Students react to threat made at Florida Gulf Coast University Students at Florida Gulf Coast University said they don’t know the specifics of a threat made last week, but they do know it was taken care of.
Missing and endangered boy found in Lehigh Acres Authorities have found a missing and endangered boy in Lehigh Acres. Police asked for the public’s help in locating Zachariah McKelvin.
School District denies bus service to student despite mother’s measurements When we think of the bus stop, we typically think of it as a safe place for our children, but one mother says the Lee County School District told her they live too close to the school to get a bus route.
MATLACHA 2 stranded dolphins rescued from mangroves near Matlacha Two stranded dolphins were pulled from mangroves near Matlacha.
CAPE CORAL NAACP honors Cape Coral Police Chief after acknowledging hate crime NAACP President, James Muwakkil, was so impressed with Cape Coral Police Chief Anthony Sizemore that he wanted the entire city to know.
NAPLES Jingled Elves trolley tour underway Breaking out your best dance moves and spreading Christmas cheer. These ‘jingled elves’ are breaking it down with a purpose.
BONITA SPRINGS Bonita Springs Elementary School’s demolition plans There’s a new lesson plan at Bonita Springs Elementary School: Demolition 101. The school is set to be knocked down, and there’s good reason.
MARCO ISLAND Marco Island Councilmember’s dogs allegedly attack 13-year-old girl Councilor Tamara Goehler is coming under fire after her dogs allegedly attacked a 13-year-old girl and the girl’s five-month-old puppy.
PUNTA GORDA Gilchrist Park’s future brightens as boat cleanup commences The boats blocking Gilchrist Park are ready to be moved two years after Hurricane Ian.
Lee County Department of Health issues red tide alert for Bowman’s Beach The Florida Department of Health in Lee County has issued a health alert for the presence of red tide near Bowman’s Beach.
CAPE CORAL City of Cape Coral working on project to address canal safety An older Cape Coral couple drove into a canal last year. Neighbors are now saying something needs to be done about canal safety.
NAPLES Collier County mental health center receives $4 million donation A giant donation is dedicated to providing people with better mental health care in southwest Florida.
LABELLE City of LaBelle under precautionary boil water notice A water main break has the City of Labelle under a precautionary boil water notice.
ESTERO FGCU student wins ice dancing national championship FGCU sophomore Lucas Appel wins his second US Senior Solo Dance National Championship in three years.
Lee County Sheriff’s Office: Parent brings weapon to Lehigh Acres school According to a Lee County Sheriff’s Office report, there is probable cause to believe a woman unintentionally brought a firearm to school.
Students react to threat made at Florida Gulf Coast University Students at Florida Gulf Coast University said they don’t know the specifics of a threat made last week, but they do know it was taken care of.
Missing and endangered boy found in Lehigh Acres Authorities have found a missing and endangered boy in Lehigh Acres. Police asked for the public’s help in locating Zachariah McKelvin.
School District denies bus service to student despite mother’s measurements When we think of the bus stop, we typically think of it as a safe place for our children, but one mother says the Lee County School District told her they live too close to the school to get a bus route.
MATLACHA 2 stranded dolphins rescued from mangroves near Matlacha Two stranded dolphins were pulled from mangroves near Matlacha.
CAPE CORAL NAACP honors Cape Coral Police Chief after acknowledging hate crime NAACP President, James Muwakkil, was so impressed with Cape Coral Police Chief Anthony Sizemore that he wanted the entire city to know.
NAPLES Jingled Elves trolley tour underway Breaking out your best dance moves and spreading Christmas cheer. These ‘jingled elves’ are breaking it down with a purpose.
BONITA SPRINGS Bonita Springs Elementary School’s demolition plans There’s a new lesson plan at Bonita Springs Elementary School: Demolition 101. The school is set to be knocked down, and there’s good reason.
MARCO ISLAND Marco Island Councilmember’s dogs allegedly attack 13-year-old girl Councilor Tamara Goehler is coming under fire after her dogs allegedly attacked a 13-year-old girl and the girl’s five-month-old puppy.
PUNTA GORDA Gilchrist Park’s future brightens as boat cleanup commences The boats blocking Gilchrist Park are ready to be moved two years after Hurricane Ian.
Lee County Department of Health issues red tide alert for Bowman’s Beach The Florida Department of Health in Lee County has issued a health alert for the presence of red tide near Bowman’s Beach.
CAPE CORAL City of Cape Coral working on project to address canal safety An older Cape Coral couple drove into a canal last year. Neighbors are now saying something needs to be done about canal safety.
NAPLES Collier County mental health center receives $4 million donation A giant donation is dedicated to providing people with better mental health care in southwest Florida.
LABELLE City of LaBelle under precautionary boil water notice A water main break has the City of Labelle under a precautionary boil water notice.
ESTERO FGCU student wins ice dancing national championship FGCU sophomore Lucas Appel wins his second US Senior Solo Dance National Championship in three years.
Lee County Sheriff’s Office: Parent brings weapon to Lehigh Acres school According to a Lee County Sheriff’s Office report, there is probable cause to believe a woman unintentionally brought a firearm to school.
Credit: via WINK News. Scammers are filing claims under the names and information of Floridians who have collected unemployment, even if they didn’t give it to them directly. Kate Larsen from Naples told us she accidentally gave out her personal information on a call she thought came from the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity. “I noticed that the phone call was from San Antonio, Texas, and I’m like, ‘Oh, gosh, I think this was a mistake,’” Larsen said. Nine months after Larsen stopped collecting unemployment benefits, she got swept up in a scam. “I had received a letter from unemployment that I needed to do something,” Larsen said. “But I’ve been so busy that I hadn’t been able to go in and do that, and so I thought that this was part of that.” An automated phone message asked Larsen to verify her Social Security number and pin. After she did, the call ended. This week, someone filed a new claim on her account. “And it said that my debit card was pending approval, so it’s like they’ve changed my debit card number,” Larsen said. Lately, DEO has put out multiple warnings. It will never contact anyone by automated phone call, text message, social media posts or private messages. Attention claimants! Please be aware of scams attempting to steal your personal information like this one. DEO does not communicate through texts and the Department’s official website is https://t.co/YAAMwNb5Ya. pic.twitter.com/AYDNQkhZvu — Florida DEO (@FLDEO) April 27, 2021 Scam Alert! The Department will never use an automated system to contact you about your Reemployment Assistance claim. Do not provide any personal information to people trying to pose as the Department. pic.twitter.com/TDxGw58A7r — Florida DEO (@FLDEO) April 28, 2021 Lately, DEO has put out multiple warnings. It will never contact anyone by automated phone call, text message, social media posts or private messages. But the bad guys will. “Half of the work that I do all day has to do with fraudulent claims, helping people report them, helping people weed out if this is a real DEO page, if it’s a real phone call people, they are spoofing DEO’s phone number,” said Vanessa Brito, an advocate for people collecting unemployment. Brito said there are more vulnerabilities to Floridians who have collected unemployment. “This is not just about people who were desperate and give their information out,” Brito said. “This is about people who have never shared their login information, and are having their pin and login information reset. That’s a major scam.” Amid these possible scams, a glitch with the unemployment website and the identity verification service meant to prevent fraud is keeping people from their benefits. “They unlock; they claim; it locks; they don’t get paid; they have to wait to get unlocked to get paid,” Brito said. “Then, they claim weeks again, and … it’s a cycle.” DEO says it’s working on it, but some people we’ve spoken to have gone as many as 10 weeks without payments. “Every measure has really backfired on the state and on the claimants, and it’s frustrating because nobody wants to get scammed,” Brito said. “But nobody can just stop paying their bills either.” Larsen reported the fraud. “I feel sorry for anybody who’s relying on that and then have this happen and not have that money available to them,” Larsen said. “That would be horrible.” Brito advises people to check their accounts every day to make sure their information is still correct, including contact information. After we asked DEO about all the issues with fraud and ID.me, Press Secretary Andrew Nixon said in an email: “The Department has recently implemented an alert system to notify Reemployment Assistance claimants when banking information or PIN numbers have been changed in CONNECT. The notification will come from alerts@noreply.deo.myflorida.com, an official DEO email address. If claimants believe someone has stolen their identity, gained access to their account, and are now locked out, they should report this through the Reemployment Assistance Help Center, here.” DEO has implemented an alert system to notify Reemployment Assistance claimants when banking information or PIN numbers have been changed in CONNECT. Notification will come from an official @deo.myflorida.com email address. pic.twitter.com/WwNTwZofHx — Florida DEO (@FLDEO) April 29, 2021 DEO also provided an identity theft toolkit which details what Floridians should do if they are a victim of identity theft and steps they should take to mitigate fraudulent activity on their account. To view the identity theft toolkit, click here.