LEHIGH ACRES FGCU softball team helps Habitat for Humanity build three homes The Florida Gulf Coast University softball team helped Habitat for Humanity build three homes Saturday.
ESTERO Home Base Golf Tournament helps SWFL Veterans Veterans hit the green at the Copperleaf Golf Course on Saturday. This was part of the Home Base golf tournament.
FORT MYERS At least one person dead after propane truck collides with golf cart Florida Highway Patrol is investigating a crash that has left one person dead and another injured Saturday morning.
Scattered storms ahead for your Saturday plans The Weather Authority is tracking weekend temperatures in the low to mid-90s this weekend with a chance for scattered storms this afternoon.
WINK NEWS SWFL Scoreboard: High School Football Week 3 Thunderstorms tried to put a stop to week three of high school football on Friday Night, but gridiron action prevailed.
Man accused of plotting murder-for-hire denied bond A man suspected of being involved with a murder-for-hire plot will stay behind bars. Ryan Toranzo had his renewed motion to set bond denied today in Collier County Court.
LABELLE Two dead after crash on State Road 80 According to the Florida Highway Patrol, there was a crash on State Road 80 that has left at least one person dead Friday evening.
DeSoto County looks to recruit more teachers While it can sometimes be easy to fill a classroom with students, it is not so easy for teachers. Schools across the nation and locally in Southwest Florida are still dealing with the challenges of teacher shortages. With class back in session, so is teacher recruiting for DeSoto County schools. The assistant superintendent, Jake Reynolds, […]
IMMOKALEE ROAD Push for change after deadly crash on Immokalee Rd. We’re told the woman was driving with two kids in the car when a semi ran a red light and hit her Thursday morning.
FORT MYERS BEACH Mobi-Mats deployed on Fort Myers Beach A walkway to paradise! Brand new and blue, the Mobi-Mat is making things easier for Fort Myers Beachgoers.
NAPLES Women of Steel business conference inspiring and empowering women Focused, hardworking, empowered. These women have made a name for themselves as Women of Steel.
NAPLES Beloved Collier County bus driver retires after 20 years After 20 years of getting kids to school safely, a beloved Collier County bus driver is retiring.
Wade Wilson has new death row mugshot Convicted double-killer Wade Wilson has a new death row mugshot.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Sizzle Dining is back in SWFL It’s Sizzle Season! Local restaurants are ready to welcome new faces by offering exclusive menu deals to attract new customers.
LEHIGH ACRES FGCU softball team helps Habitat for Humanity build three homes The Florida Gulf Coast University softball team helped Habitat for Humanity build three homes Saturday.
ESTERO Home Base Golf Tournament helps SWFL Veterans Veterans hit the green at the Copperleaf Golf Course on Saturday. This was part of the Home Base golf tournament.
FORT MYERS At least one person dead after propane truck collides with golf cart Florida Highway Patrol is investigating a crash that has left one person dead and another injured Saturday morning.
Scattered storms ahead for your Saturday plans The Weather Authority is tracking weekend temperatures in the low to mid-90s this weekend with a chance for scattered storms this afternoon.
WINK NEWS SWFL Scoreboard: High School Football Week 3 Thunderstorms tried to put a stop to week three of high school football on Friday Night, but gridiron action prevailed.
Man accused of plotting murder-for-hire denied bond A man suspected of being involved with a murder-for-hire plot will stay behind bars. Ryan Toranzo had his renewed motion to set bond denied today in Collier County Court.
LABELLE Two dead after crash on State Road 80 According to the Florida Highway Patrol, there was a crash on State Road 80 that has left at least one person dead Friday evening.
DeSoto County looks to recruit more teachers While it can sometimes be easy to fill a classroom with students, it is not so easy for teachers. Schools across the nation and locally in Southwest Florida are still dealing with the challenges of teacher shortages. With class back in session, so is teacher recruiting for DeSoto County schools. The assistant superintendent, Jake Reynolds, […]
IMMOKALEE ROAD Push for change after deadly crash on Immokalee Rd. We’re told the woman was driving with two kids in the car when a semi ran a red light and hit her Thursday morning.
FORT MYERS BEACH Mobi-Mats deployed on Fort Myers Beach A walkway to paradise! Brand new and blue, the Mobi-Mat is making things easier for Fort Myers Beachgoers.
NAPLES Women of Steel business conference inspiring and empowering women Focused, hardworking, empowered. These women have made a name for themselves as Women of Steel.
NAPLES Beloved Collier County bus driver retires after 20 years After 20 years of getting kids to school safely, a beloved Collier County bus driver is retiring.
Wade Wilson has new death row mugshot Convicted double-killer Wade Wilson has a new death row mugshot.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA Sizzle Dining is back in SWFL It’s Sizzle Season! Local restaurants are ready to welcome new faces by offering exclusive menu deals to attract new customers.
A 2020 Jeep Sahara was stolen from a car dealership in Lee County. (CREDIT: WINK News) A Jeep was stolen while it was being painted at the dealership. The Jeep’s owner Joe Prendota said the dealership, Galeana Chrysler Dodge Jeep on Tamiami Trail, told him it’s not their problem. Prendota signed a waiver that says the dealership is not liable for any lost or stolen items from inside the vehicle. There is usually also a clause for what happens if the vehicle disappears. That’s the situation Prendota finds himself in now. Prendota said the dealership didn’t tell him the Jeep was gone until two days after it disappeared from the car lot. Prendota said he took the his 2020 Jeep Sahara to the Galeana dealership for a paint job on Monday, Feb. 14 but when he called the dealership a little more than a week later to see if it was ready, they told him someone would return his call. “The guy calls me back about two hours later and then tells me ‘we can’t find your Jeep did somebody come pick it up?’ And I wouldn’t, you know, nobody came to pick it up. It’s there for a paint job. ‘Well, we don’t know where it’s at. We can’t find it at all. We’ve been looking everywhere,'” Prendota, of Cape Coral, said. Prendota said he had to call the dealership to be told that his car was gone. “And I said well, then you need to call the police. And that’s when they called the police. I left work went there and follow the report,” Prendota said. According to the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, an employee who works at Galeana told detectives they went to service the car on Monday, Feb. 21 but could not find it. No one called Prendota or the sheriff’s office. The same thing happened on Feb. 22 and 23. “I called them. And that’s when they told me Wednesday afternoon that was gone. They never called me,” Prendota said. WINK News called the dealership to find out what happened. General Manager Joe Owens said he hadn’t heard about the length of time between realizing the Jeep was gone and when it was reported to law enforcement. “Until you shared that information with me that’s the first I’m hearing about it,” Owens said. “That’s normally the first thing we do, we do our due diligence, make sure no one else moved it with 150 employees.” Owens told WINK News a second car was stolen from the lot at Galeana. He said Galeana has all of the intentions of making the situation right and getting Prendota a new vehicle to make up for what happened.