More than a game: City of Palms Tournament boosts tourism in SWFL“Natural force” changes Captiva’s geography; findings from barrier island 5-year review
NAPLES More than a game: City of Palms Tournament boosts tourism in SWFL Southwest Florida relies on tourists and visitors for income. In Fort Myers, one of the big draws to the area this time of year is the City of Palms basketball tournament.
CAPTIVA “Natural force” changes Captiva’s geography; findings from barrier island 5-year review Winds of change are sweeping through Southwest Florida, and in particular, Captiva, a Lee County barrier island. Strong storms could be bringing those winds on and could change Captiva’s geography.
Charlotte Sheriff comments on shooters mental health following the murder of Sergeant Diaz Charlotte County Sheriff Bill Prummell called out gunman Andrew Mostyn’s family for not doing enough to prevent the tragic shooting and killing of Sergeant Elio Diaz.
Viewing held for sergeant killed in the line of duty Flags in Charlotte County will be at half-staff on Friday in honor of Sgt. Elio Diaz, the Charlotte County deputy shot and killed in the line of duty on Sunday.
OCHOPEE Wooten family wants business name changed after airboat tour crash The Wooten family feels their name is being tarnished after the recent airboat crash in Ochopee on Friday, December 13th.
EAST NAPLES Collier County technical college begins open enrollment for spring A Collier County technical college has begun open enrollment for the spring semester.
LEHIGH ACRES 13-year-old arrested in Lehigh Acres for allegedly groping woman A 13-year-old has been arrested in Lehigh Acres after authorities say he groped a woman in his neighborhood.
Rise in sleep apnea in Hispanic adults According to a health study, 14% of Hispanic men and 6% of Hispanic women have sleep apnea.
FAA: Battery fires happening nearly twice a week on US flights New numbers from the Federal Aviation Administration show that lithium battery fires occur nearly twice a week on U.S. Flights.
SOUTH FORT MYERS Former Uber driver found guilty of raping passenger A former Uber driver has been found guilty of raping his passenger.
FORT MYERS Overturned dump truck causes traffic headache on Ortiz Ave. into the Forum Traffic has been disrupted in Fort Myers due to an overturned dump truck at Ortiz Avenue and Colonial Boulevard.
MATLACHA Plea hearing rescheduled for man accused of deadly Matlacha DUI crash The plea hearing for the man accused of a drunk driving crash that killed a Matlacha woman has been rescheduled.
punta gorda Sheriff Prummell: Sgt. Elio Diaz tried helping suspect who killed him Charlotte County Sheriff Bill Prummell said Deputy Sgt. Elio Diaz spent an hour working to help a homeless man before that man turned on him and shot him dead.
CAPE CORAL Christopher Davis, Cape Coral man charged with murdering boyfriend in pretrial mode The Cape Coral man charged with murdering his ex-boyfriend is appeared in court Thursday for a pretrial conference.
LEHIGH ACRES Temporary road closure slated for Bell Blvd. sidewalk project Charles Sise Street East in Lehigh Acres will be closed from Bell Boulevard to Thomas Sherwin Avenue beginning next week.
NAPLES More than a game: City of Palms Tournament boosts tourism in SWFL Southwest Florida relies on tourists and visitors for income. In Fort Myers, one of the big draws to the area this time of year is the City of Palms basketball tournament.
CAPTIVA “Natural force” changes Captiva’s geography; findings from barrier island 5-year review Winds of change are sweeping through Southwest Florida, and in particular, Captiva, a Lee County barrier island. Strong storms could be bringing those winds on and could change Captiva’s geography.
Charlotte Sheriff comments on shooters mental health following the murder of Sergeant Diaz Charlotte County Sheriff Bill Prummell called out gunman Andrew Mostyn’s family for not doing enough to prevent the tragic shooting and killing of Sergeant Elio Diaz.
Viewing held for sergeant killed in the line of duty Flags in Charlotte County will be at half-staff on Friday in honor of Sgt. Elio Diaz, the Charlotte County deputy shot and killed in the line of duty on Sunday.
OCHOPEE Wooten family wants business name changed after airboat tour crash The Wooten family feels their name is being tarnished after the recent airboat crash in Ochopee on Friday, December 13th.
EAST NAPLES Collier County technical college begins open enrollment for spring A Collier County technical college has begun open enrollment for the spring semester.
LEHIGH ACRES 13-year-old arrested in Lehigh Acres for allegedly groping woman A 13-year-old has been arrested in Lehigh Acres after authorities say he groped a woman in his neighborhood.
Rise in sleep apnea in Hispanic adults According to a health study, 14% of Hispanic men and 6% of Hispanic women have sleep apnea.
FAA: Battery fires happening nearly twice a week on US flights New numbers from the Federal Aviation Administration show that lithium battery fires occur nearly twice a week on U.S. Flights.
SOUTH FORT MYERS Former Uber driver found guilty of raping passenger A former Uber driver has been found guilty of raping his passenger.
FORT MYERS Overturned dump truck causes traffic headache on Ortiz Ave. into the Forum Traffic has been disrupted in Fort Myers due to an overturned dump truck at Ortiz Avenue and Colonial Boulevard.
MATLACHA Plea hearing rescheduled for man accused of deadly Matlacha DUI crash The plea hearing for the man accused of a drunk driving crash that killed a Matlacha woman has been rescheduled.
punta gorda Sheriff Prummell: Sgt. Elio Diaz tried helping suspect who killed him Charlotte County Sheriff Bill Prummell said Deputy Sgt. Elio Diaz spent an hour working to help a homeless man before that man turned on him and shot him dead.
CAPE CORAL Christopher Davis, Cape Coral man charged with murdering boyfriend in pretrial mode The Cape Coral man charged with murdering his ex-boyfriend is appeared in court Thursday for a pretrial conference.
LEHIGH ACRES Temporary road closure slated for Bell Blvd. sidewalk project Charles Sise Street East in Lehigh Acres will be closed from Bell Boulevard to Thomas Sherwin Avenue beginning next week.
A former Uber driver has been found guilty of raping his passenger. The jury found Felix Torres guilty of sexual battery with great force, which is a life felony. Also, he was found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of wearing a hood/mask that concealed his identity. Torres will be held with no bond. Torres looked distraught as the verdict was read, but he sat quietly in the courtroom. After the verdict, we spoke with the state attorneys, who said they are happy with the verdict the jury came back with, and they said it’s the right verdict to keep the community safe. Sentencing will be on Jan. 13 at 8:30 a.m. State prosecutors rested their case, and the defense delivered closing statements on Thursday afternoon. Torres, was an Uber driver when he raped a young woman he had just dropped off from an Uber trip in South Fort Myers. The court began in a dark room Thursday, the second day of his trial, while jurors listened to defendant Torres’s interview with detectives. In the recording, Torres claimed his sexual encounter with the victim was consensual, but the victim said she was shoved down from behind, her mouth was covered and she was raped in the dirt outside of her apartment. Lee County deputies played a video, which they said showed Torres putting on a mask before the attack. That same balaclava mask was shown as evidence in court on Thursday, and Torres, the defendant, was cross-examined on the witness stand about his changing stories and sheer number of lies. RELATED: Trial begins for Uber driver accused of rape When Torres took the stand, he stated that he and the victim had a consensual interaction, and when they went to have sex, she then said no. He said when she said that, he immediately left. On Wednesday, we heard from the victim and her former roommate, Ariana Scott, in court. Both told the court what they saw and heard two years ago. Scott claimed her roommate came home in shock, saying she had been raped by her Uber driver moments after being dropped off outside of the Ashlar Apartments. Deputies said you can see Torres on surveillance footage chasing the victim down while putting on a mask. The victim claimed that Torres shoved her on the ground, covered her mouth and raped her. That statement was something Torres’s defense questioned.