Senior Airman surprises cousin on Aubrey Rogers softball senior nightPolice: 15-year-old injured after accidentally shot in the leg
NORTH NAPLES Senior Airman surprises cousin on Aubrey Rogers softball senior night Aubrey Rogers senior pitcher and infielder McKenzie Vargas surprised by her Air Force cousin for Senior Night.
BONITA SPRINGS Police: 15-year-old injured after accidentally shot in the leg Lee County deputies say the teen was accidentally shot in the leg.
PUNTA GORDA Exclusive: Brother and best friend of accused pedophile priest speak out Riley’s brother reached out to WINK on Friday, saying people aren’t getting the full story.
IMMOKALEE Caught on video: Huge gator crosses Immokalee neighborhood Fridays in Florida are for gators
FORT MYERS FGCU softball pitcher making a name for herself One season in FGCU, freshman pitcher Allison Sparkman is already ruffling feathers in the circle.
Surrendering-pets trend at Gulf Coast Humane Society concerns An large amount of pets are being surrendered by their owners. About half of the dogs at the Gulf Coast Humane Society are surrender dogs.
Students benefitting from millions in sales tax dollars So far, the voter-approved half-cent sales tax has brought in $507 million for the Lee County School District.
PORT CHARLOTTE ‘Shady’: One woman feels misled after federal student loan consolidation It takes some people decades to pay off their student loans. One woman’s last payment was in sight until she took a gamble she said she was told to take.
FORT MYERS Homeless encampments inch closer to neighborhoods Law enforcement has swept multiple encampments, cleaning the trails of mess and muck left behind, and some of these encampments are right in our backyards.
BIG CYPRESS PRESERVE What changes if Big Cypress National Preserve becomes a Wilderness Area? America’s first nationally designated preserve is in Southwest Florida’s backyard, and it is celebrating its 50th anniversary.
Method to treat IBD being used for other health issues Trying to get treatments for the brain when fighting neurological diseases like epilepsy and ALS is a challenge.
FORT MYERS NTSB report reveals new details in helicopter crash after Hurricane Ian The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released its final report on a helicopter crash that occurred in Iona, Florida, shortly after Hurricane Ian.
NAPLES Memorial celebrates the life of John Passidomo Hundreds of friends and family gathered for a memorial at Baker Park in Naples.
‘Latinos in Action’ empowers all students to succeed WINK News talked with teachers who are a part of the program, helping kids reach their full potential.
Immokalee ‘The eyes always draw me in’; Immokalee portrait artist turns dark times into color One of Southwest Florida best portrait artist, Martha Maria Cantu, almost gave up art. Now she’s on the forefront of the city of Immokalee, to make her community filled with color.
NORTH NAPLES Senior Airman surprises cousin on Aubrey Rogers softball senior night Aubrey Rogers senior pitcher and infielder McKenzie Vargas surprised by her Air Force cousin for Senior Night.
BONITA SPRINGS Police: 15-year-old injured after accidentally shot in the leg Lee County deputies say the teen was accidentally shot in the leg.
PUNTA GORDA Exclusive: Brother and best friend of accused pedophile priest speak out Riley’s brother reached out to WINK on Friday, saying people aren’t getting the full story.
IMMOKALEE Caught on video: Huge gator crosses Immokalee neighborhood Fridays in Florida are for gators
FORT MYERS FGCU softball pitcher making a name for herself One season in FGCU, freshman pitcher Allison Sparkman is already ruffling feathers in the circle.
Surrendering-pets trend at Gulf Coast Humane Society concerns An large amount of pets are being surrendered by their owners. About half of the dogs at the Gulf Coast Humane Society are surrender dogs.
Students benefitting from millions in sales tax dollars So far, the voter-approved half-cent sales tax has brought in $507 million for the Lee County School District.
PORT CHARLOTTE ‘Shady’: One woman feels misled after federal student loan consolidation It takes some people decades to pay off their student loans. One woman’s last payment was in sight until she took a gamble she said she was told to take.
FORT MYERS Homeless encampments inch closer to neighborhoods Law enforcement has swept multiple encampments, cleaning the trails of mess and muck left behind, and some of these encampments are right in our backyards.
BIG CYPRESS PRESERVE What changes if Big Cypress National Preserve becomes a Wilderness Area? America’s first nationally designated preserve is in Southwest Florida’s backyard, and it is celebrating its 50th anniversary.
Method to treat IBD being used for other health issues Trying to get treatments for the brain when fighting neurological diseases like epilepsy and ALS is a challenge.
FORT MYERS NTSB report reveals new details in helicopter crash after Hurricane Ian The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released its final report on a helicopter crash that occurred in Iona, Florida, shortly after Hurricane Ian.
NAPLES Memorial celebrates the life of John Passidomo Hundreds of friends and family gathered for a memorial at Baker Park in Naples.
‘Latinos in Action’ empowers all students to succeed WINK News talked with teachers who are a part of the program, helping kids reach their full potential.
Immokalee ‘The eyes always draw me in’; Immokalee portrait artist turns dark times into color One of Southwest Florida best portrait artist, Martha Maria Cantu, almost gave up art. Now she’s on the forefront of the city of Immokalee, to make her community filled with color.
Gut-wrenching and alarming visuals show the impact of what just a small amount of fentanyl can do to someone. Fentanyl is filling the streets and taking the lives of people who have no idea they are taking the drug. WINK News reported on a grand jury indicting Anthony Hicks for first-degree capital murder. Hicks is accused of playing a part in the overdose of a 25-year-old woman. Detectives say Hicks sold her what she thought was Percocet, and unknown to her, it was laced with fentanyl. State attorney Amira Fox made a promise to people who deal the dangerous drugs. “If I can prove it, and you sell or distribute a controlled substance to somebody, and it kills them or is a substantial factor in their death, I can and I will prosecute you,” said Fox. Hicks is the second person locally charged with first-degree murder for playing a part in a drug overdose. RELATED: Fort Myers man charged with first-degree murder and selling fentanyl to 25-year-old woman Typically when you hear first-degree murder charges you think of premeditated intent to kill. In this particular case, investigators say Hicks sold a young woman a deadly fentanyl pill that she thought was Percocet, and that pill killed her. WINK News spoke with a legal expert who said in this case, you don’t have to prove intent to kill, and this is all part of a crackdown on the fentanyl epidemic. Twenty-five-year-old Mackenzie Wolldridge of Addison, New York, passed away on Oct. 26 in Fort Myers. According to the state attorney and the Lee County Sheriff’s Office, she didn’t know she was taking fentanyl. She thought she was buying a Percocet. Hicks, 22, who sold her the pill, is charged with first-degree murder. “Don’t have to prove intent other than he did sell or deliver. Doesn’t even have to sell, let’s say he sells it and shares with his friend, then his friend dies as long as they can prove a causation of the death, they can be charged with first-degree murder,” said Scott Moorey, a criminal defense attorney. Legal expert Moorey explained it doesn’t matter if Hicks planned to kill Wooldridge. If it’s proved he did by selling her fentanyl, then that’s murder in the first degree. “We will not tolerate those that peddle deadly poison in Lee County,” said Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno. “Understand, the sheriff and our lead prosecutor have made it very clear that they’re going to prosecute people to the fullest extent of the law, and the law’s changed at the first of the year,” said Moorey. “We now can be charged with first-degree murder if you deliver a substance that causes the death, specifically fentanyl.” Hicks is now in the Lee County Jail awaiting his next court appearance.