NewsTalk 730

A deadly lightning strike claimed the lives of two Miami men, ages 38 and 31, along with their hunting dogs in southeast Highlands County. Florida Fish and Wildlife officers found their bodies Wednesday on a levee near Canal C-41A after they were reported missing. Investigators believe the strike happened Monday night, though the Medical Examiner…

Local veterans and their families are getting extra support in Highlands County. The Veterans Service Office and Highlands County Library System are hosting a free tutorial to help with the My HealtheVet website. The session takes place Monday, October 13th, at 9 a.m. at the Sebring Public Library. VSO staff will guide veterans step-by-step through…

A 15-year-old Avon Park High School student has been arrested and charged with a second-degree felony for making a written threat to kill. Deputies say the student posted photos holding pistols and threatened another student by text. Sheriff Paul Blackman stressed such threats will always be taken seriously and urged parents to warn their children…

A Highlands County corrections officer is among nearly 250 arrested in a major Polk County human trafficking sting. Detectives say 56-year-old Robert Vincent Hill, III, of Lake Placid, a Florida Department of Corrections sergeant, tried to pay $200 to sexually abuse a 13-year-old. He was arrested Thursday in Highlands County and then booked into the…

Prosecutors say disturbing hotel surveillance video and text messages helped build a strong case in the killing of 21-year-old Elijah Daley. In a hearing last week, a detective detailed how Daley thought he was meeting friends at a Lake Placid Ramada Inn in May, but instead was ambushed — shot nine times after suspects plotted…

A Sebring Police corporal is on administrative leave after being linked to a vandalism incident at the Blue Lagoon Saloon. Security video shows Dakota Bond letting air out of a motorcycle tire and stealing a valve stem cap, while Corporal Zackery Thompson appeared to act as a lookout. Both face possible charges of culpable negligence…

A Stand Your Ground hearing for Sebring man Jeffrey Danley, accused in the 2022 beating death of his neighbor, has been postponed. Prosecutors requested the delay after a key witness became unavailable. Danley is charged with manslaughter, felony battery, and evidence tampering in the death of Richard McBain III. His motion claims he acted in…

A 23-year-old man is behind bars after deputies say he stole several guns from Spring Lake residents — and then tried to sell them online just hours later. Deputies say Jaden Sutton was caught after investigators linked security video from multiple streets to a white Toyota Camry. Once they got a warrant for Sutton’s Snapchat…

The owners of Caddyshack Bar & Grill say they expect to relocate next year after the Sebring City Council approved a one-year extension on their lease. Caddyshack has served food and drinks for 19 years at 3122 Golfview Road, next to the city golf course, but its future has been uncertain since the Blackmon family…

Polk County deputies arrested a Frostproof man Tuesday after a brief chase ended with help from a K-9. Deputies say 33-year-old Kurt Hugh Gaddy, wanted for violating probation, tried to run from a camper on Herndon Road. The chase didn’t last long — K-9 Owens and Deputy Warren quickly caught up and took him into…