News Update for 12/11/25

A Marine Corps veteran previously caught faking his military record has been arrested again for illegally obtaining a Florida Purple Heart license plate. Detective Glenn Burnsed says Zacharias Reeves renewed the honor plate for his truck using false documents, even though he has never received a Purple Heart. Video from the Highlands County Tax Collector’s Office shows Reeves walking out with the plate in July. Reeves now faces a new slate of charges — including fraud, forgery, and falsely claiming military honors — a repeat case of what investigators call stolen valor.

The City of Avon Park is appealing a judge’s ruling that accused a city official of giving false testimony in a foreclosure case. Judge Heather Beato found the City pursued fines it knew hadn’t accrued and treated the defendants differently, awarding just over $28,000 — far below the six-figure amount sought. The case is now before Florida’s Sixth District Court of Appeal for review and possible mediation.

The City of Sebring is ramping up its crackdown on long-neglected properties, with the Sunset Beach Motel now facing over $300,000 in fines, rising by $200 a day. The city has filed a lien-foreclosure lawsuit against owner 1025 Sunset LLC after years of unresolved violations. Attorney Matthew Weidner, leading the enforcement effort, most recently filed two more lien-foreclosure lawsuits on December 4 as Sebring moves to clear titles and take control of blighted properties

A new statewide effort is rolling out to protect older Floridians from scams and financial fraud. Operation Senior Shield is a free alert system designed to educate and empower seniors and caregivers by warning them about deceptive phone calls, texts, emails, and pop-up messages. Lieutenant Governor Jay Collins helped launch the initiative today, noting that the average senior targeted by these schemes loses roughly 32-thousand dollars.