LaBELLE — The serious crime of human trafficking seems to be on a rise nationwide and also in South Florida. Whether due to increased public awareness of the problem, or the attention it’s drawing anew from authorities, Florida is No. 3 among the 50 states for the number of hotline calls about these human rights abuses going to the national reporting hotline, so local public officials are working to make even more citizens informed about it.

In fact, January was declared “Human Trafficking Awareness Month” by many cities and counties, including Hendry, due to a push by the Florida Department of Health and on the national level by the CDC. The Hendry County Sheriff’s Office has a four-officer team called its Criminal Interdiction Unit now concentrating on enforcement activity in this area since receiving a large grant to counterattack the traffickers (See story on Page 6).

At their Jan. 22 regular meeting, Hendry County commissioners learned much about what a thorn it is in the side of modern society to have this modern-day form of slavery in its midst.

Board Chairman Mitchell Wills welcomed local Health Department Director Joe Pepe during presentations to the commission, saying: “This is another subject, Dr. Pepe, that we appreciate you educating the public on. A lot of folks probably don’t think that’s relevant here, so this is going to open a lot of eyes, I’m sure.”

He went on to describe for them a phenomenon that he says calls for establishment of a “quilt of resources” and multiple outreach points where people who’re being victimized can go for help, in order to stop the cycle and deter the criminals who are perpetrating the often hidden abuses.

Dr. Pepe brought with him Theo Rodriguez, director of human services and strategic initiatives for the department, and gave an overview of their efforts. Dr. Pepe said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has “recognized human trafficking as a public health issue,” and explained it disproportionately affects people who have already been victimized by violence or adversity. Among the societal conditions giving rise to human trafficking he listed are gang violence, interpersonal violence, runaway homeless youth and unaccompanied minors. “But here’s where it really gets concerning for me, especially with a smaller community, and (because) we’ve experienced two hurricanes recently — persons displaced during natural disasters,” Dr. Pepe said.

He went on that there are two basic forms: “There’s sex trafficking and labor trafficking, where there’s recruitment, harboring and transportation provision; obtaining, patronizing or soliciting of a person for the purpose of commercial sex acts, or for the purposes of labor services; through the use of force, fraud, coercion, and for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude. So debt bondage is a form,” he explained.

“We’ve seen some cases recently where the individuals being trafficked were residents of the United States; there wasn’t an international smuggling component with the trafficking. That’s sometimes a misperception.”

As a matter of fact, Dr. Pepe said regarding cases reported recently through the National Human Trafficking Hotline: “If you look at the comparison between U.S. and foreign (-born subjects), they’re almost the same. So it’s almost a 50 percent mix between domestic citizens and foreign nationals that have been reporting in to the hotline.”

He said that of 5,147 calls to their call center, 367 cases were reported last year in this state. “We’ve seen some recent news articles of alleged trafficking rings, most recently in January in … Lehigh. So these cases are ongoing, and I stress ‘alleged,’ but we have heard of different moments where cases like these have made the news,” he said

So, since one of their priorities is improving trauma services and initiatives to help the community thrive, they’ve focused on this issue. The health department is conducting a lot of training for medical providers and many others, including nurses, teachers, law enforcement, even sanitation and postal workers, to be able to recognize the signs of human trafficking.

Dr. Pepe says a lot of times the victims are trafficked through recruitment, harboring, transporting, providing resources and “almost transferred like property.

“They (the traffickers) use force, fraud and coercion, and so the debt bondage component of it, the involuntary servitude component of it, that is really tough because folks are seeking better opportunities, but they’re unable to escape the continuous debt or whatever services are required as a function of being able to work in a certain place or live somewhere,” he explained.

Health department and other workers are being coached to fill in the blanks behind the numbers when they do intake procedures.

“(It’s) so that they’re able to code their encounters so we’re able to run more reports and get a greater level of detail. We need more data to fully understand where these cases are happening.

The other side, too, is to train our medical providers so that they are access points for resources and kind of break the cycle of trafficking that’s occurring.

“Because many times folks that are trafficked come in for medical care, but the providers are struggling with where to link those folks up to. And the persons trafficking them may also come to the medical exam with them, so the providers are being trained on how to identify evidence of trafficking so they can reach out and link to care, which is a pillar of public health,” Dr. Pepe continued.

He said the numbers locally particularly are not thought to be huge, but that is partly because of a lack of data and also because “folks won’t seek care in the same community they live in, for their own safety,” he said, stating that they have seen some Collier County residents who came to Hendry for help.

Commissioner Mike Swindle noted that the numbers are just for reported cases and that the illegal practices could be much more widespread.

Dr. Pepe said he wants to “stand up a panel, a group of community leaders that can make decisions on how to create a resilient and protective environment for our community.

“We would love more folks that are community leaders, faith-based leaders and other individuals (to) come together and put together a quilt of resources so that our community is not the most conducive environment toward victimization and trafficking. Then we’ll look at all the data, create a community dashboard for our data and put all that together in a strategic plan for how we’re going to move forward,” he finished. Commissioners urged him to bring back more information when he has it, and Dr. Pepe said he intended to do “some more data mining.”

Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Wendy Sartory Link has requested an investigation into unidentified “robo” calls that were made between Feb. 15 through Feb. 19 to voters who requested Vote by Mail ballots for the March 12 Uniform Municipal Elections.

Without explicitly saying as much, the robo call script implies that the call is from the Supervisor of Elections Office, warning voters of possible criminal penalties associated with the collection of Vote by Mail ballots.

“The script refers to ‘our office’ several times, and ends by asking voters to contact the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Office with any questions, along with the main SOE number. The call has no tag line identifying its true source. The call also implied the SOE is conducting investigations into Vote by Mail fraud. That is not the case,” Supervisor Link said.

Supervisor Link has notified the State Attorney’s Office and the Palm Beach County branch of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) of the calls.

“Calling voters with a message about criminal investigations and penalties serves only to frighten and intimidate voters. Doing so, and implying that the Supervisor is making the call without identifying the source of the call, is illegal,” Supervisor Link added.

The 60 second robo call, was made to an unknown number of voters, several of whom recorded and reported the call to the Supervisor’s Office.

“I encourage any voter who has questions about Vote by Mail to call our offices at 561-656-6200. Our Elections Specialists will be happy to answer any questions and to help a voter place a Vote by Mail request,” Supervisor Link said.

The script of the call is below:
(male voice/60 seconds)
Vote by Mail ballots have been mailed. Voters beware. News report of possible fraud of persons illegally collecting vote by mail ballots. Our office is notifying you that Florida law provides for severe penalties up to and including fines and jail time for any person who provides or offers to provide and any person who accepts payment or benefits in exchange for requesting, collecting, delivering, or otherwise physically possessing more than two vote by mail ballots per election. Our office has been conducting ongoing investigations into reports of vote by mail fraud and individuals receiving payments to collect vote by mail ballots. If you have any questions on how to return your vote by mail ballots, please contact the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Office at 561-656-6200.

Patricia Coleman

PALM BEACH COUNTY — Crime Stoppers of Palm Beach County needs your help in locating Patricia Coleman also known as Patricia Sparrow, 50, black, female, 5 feet 4 inches tall, 180 pounds, black hair, brown eyes and she has multiple tattoos.

Her last known address was on Northwest Ninth Avenue in South Bay.

Coleman is wanted on a warrant for failure to appear to answer to charges of burglary of a structure and petit theft.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers at 800-458-TIPS (8477), or remain anonymous by downloading the new app “Connect & Protect,” “See Something Say Something” for any Apple or Android smartphone.

The Hendry County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Interdiction Unit (CIU) is placing its emphasis on human trafficking. The office’s CIU is a four-member team made up of Sgt. Wanda Hainley plus Deputies Nicolas Todd, Richard Krasinskas and Troy Urbanowski.

In 2017, Hendry County Sheriff Steve Whidden applied for a grant from the Department of Justice, Community Oriented Policing Services, and received $771,724 to employ four officers. One of the purposes of this unit is to educate, monitor and investigate human/sex trafficking.

On Monday evening, Jan. 7, Sgt. Hainley met with a group of individuals at the First Christian Church in LaBelle. Sgt. Hainley explained that “the CIU targets human trafficking, sex trafficking, drug trafficking, firearms and gang violence.”

She went on to say, “According to the International Human Trafficking Investigators Association, human trafficking is described as ‘the exploitation by force, fraud or coercion of vulnerable people for forced labor, domestic servitude or commercial sex operations.’

“Human trafficking is a violent and disturbing crime,” explained Sgt. Hainley. “Human trafficking is a growing worldwide problem; Florida ranks third in the country with calls made to the National Human Trafficking Hotline.”

Victims of human trafficking can range over all ages, some as young as 4 years old, and all ethnicities. They are induced to perform labor or services through force, fraud or coercion. However, runaways and homeless youth, as well as victims of domestic violence, sexual assault or social discrimination are frequently targeted by traffickers.

Traffickers use a variety of control tactics, including physical and emotional abuse, sexual assault, confiscation of identification and money, isolation from friends and family, and even renaming victims. Often, traffickers identify and use their victims’ vulnerabilities in order to create dependency. They make promises aimed at addressing the needs of their victim in order to impose control. As a result, victims become trapped and fear leaving for a number of reasons, including psychological trauma, shame, emotional attachment or physical threats to themselves or their children’s safety. The common thread of the traffickers is a willingness to exploit other human beings for profit.

While victims range in age and ethnicity, in rural areas the leading victims are migrant workers. They are promised a better life, but many instead find themselves earning less than minimum wage, living in cramped conditions, facing physical threats from their employers and working under conditions of force, fraud or coercion; “they are forced to pay off their smuggling fees,” Sgt. Hainley said.

To help identify human traffickers, Sgt. Hainley and members of the CIU offered some indicators and behaviors that MAY be a red flag.

• Being aware of individuals that live with their employer or live in small quarters with a large number of unrelated people.

• Individuals may not be able to produce identification, money or tell you their passport is being held by someone else.

• They do not have the freedom to come and go or you notice someone else seems to be in control; for example where they go or who they talk to?

• There are signs of violence, such as bruising, scarring, branding or physical injuries.

• Or they react with fear at the mention of law enforcement or immigration officials.

• If you become aware of an unusual number of males gathered together in a yard and notice them entering a structure one at a time, that MAY be an indicator of sex trafficking.

• School-aged females who don’t attend school may be victims of sex trafficking.

• Most times drugs and trafficking go hand in hand.

“We need your help. The best thing you can do is notify the sheriff’s office if you suspect this type of illegal activity is occurring,” Sgt. Hainley went on. “We aren’t here to deport victims, we’re here to help them; we want to help them escape the horrific conditions or situations they have found themselves in. We’re here to help,” she concluded.

If you suspect someone is a victim of human trafficking or sex trafficking or want to request training on how better to recognize these victims, or training for your business, please contact the Hendry County Sheriff’s Office at 863-674-5600 or the Criminal Interdiction Unit at 863-673-6045.

You can report suspected human trafficking to the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 888-373-7888.

Ramzi Zayyad

PALM BEACH COUNTY — Crime Stoppers of Palm Beach County needs your help in locating Ramzi Zayyad, 33, 5 feet 11 inches tall, 175 pounds, brown hair and green eyes.

His last known address was on N.E. Seventh Street in Belle Glade.

Zayyad is wanted on a warrant for failure to appear to answer to charges of burglary with assault or battery and criminal mischief.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers at 800-458-TIPS (8477), or remain anonymous by downloading the new app “Connect & Protect,” “See Something Say Something” for any Apple or Android smartphone.

ORTONA — A Moore Haven woman passed away on Feb. 27, due to injuries sustained in a traffic accident in Glades County.

A Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) press release stated that at 8:18 p.m. a 2001 Ford F250 operated by Christina Dempsey, 33, of Moore Haven, was traveling westbound on State Road 78 West in Glades County, when she veered across the eastbound lane running off the roadway to the left. Dempsey’s Ford F250 entered the grassy shoulder and continued to travel west. She then over-corrected back to the right crossing through the westbound and eastbound lanes running off the roadway. The Ford traveled onto the grassy shoulder and entered a ditch. The Ford over corrected and overturned. The Ford came to a final rest in a heavily vegetative area on the north shoulder of the roadway.

After the crash, Ms. Dempsey exited the Ford and walked back toward the roadway as a pedestrian, entering the westbound lanes of State Road 78 West at the same time a 2004 Dodge Ram, operated by Hezekiah Reed, was traveling westbound on S.R. 78 West.

The front right of the Dodge struck Ms. Dempsey in the westbound lanes.

It was reported that Mr. Reed and a passenger in the Dodge, Emma Reed, were not injured in the crash.

The crash was under investigation at the time of the press release.

The traffic crash was investigated FHP Trooper Farris and Corporal Maldonado.

GLADES COUNTY — A March 26 court date has been set for Franklin Edwin Woodham II, 56, of Sunset Strip in Lakeport, on charges of lewd and lascivious molestation of a person under the age of 16.

According to the Glades County Sheriff’s Office report, the investigation into allegations against Woodham began on Dec. 20, 2018, after a child confided in a school resource officer.

The lewd and lascivious acts reportedly took place over a period of several years.

Woodham was arrested on Feb. 21, by Glades County Sheriff’s Office Detective Joseph Sapuppo. He was booked into the Glades County Jail. At Woodham’s first appearance hearing, Glades County Judge Jack Lundy set bail at $150,000. According to the Glades County Clerk of Courts Office, Woodham was released on bail.

His next court date is March 26 at 9 a.m. in the Glades County Courthouse.

Woodham and his wife are pastors of Point of Light Fellowship Church in Lakeport.

Details about the allegations have been kept confidential to protect the privacy of the victim.

OKEECHOBEE — The Okeechobee County Sheriff’s Office is requesting help from the public on the 2016 homicide of Clemente Garcia. In 2016, local authorities responded to the 1000 block of Northeast 60th Avenue (Four Seasons), in reference to an unresponsive man. Upon arrival, Clemente Garcia was found to be deceased.

The Sheriff’s Office is offering a reward for information that leads to the arrest of the suspect (s). If you have information, please contact Detective J. Gonzalez at 863-763-3117 ext. 5106.

To remain anonymous, call the Treasure Coast Crime Stoppers at 1-800-273-8477 or visit www.tcwatch.org.

La Oficina del Sheriff del Condado de Okeechobee está solicitando ayuda del público en un caso de homicidio. En 2016, las autoridades locales respondieron inicialmente al bloque 1000 de NE 60 Ave, en referencia a un hombre que no responde. A su llegada, el hombre fue encontrado muerto. La Oficina de Sheriff’s esta ofreciendo una recompensapor informacionque resulteen elarrestode sospechoso(s). Si tiene información sobre este caso, por favor contacteaelDet. Gonzalez (863) 763-3117 ext. 5106Para permanecer enanonimato, llame a Treasure Coast Crime Stoppers al 1-800-273-8477 o (www.tcwatch.org).

BELLE GLADE — A Belle Glade man and woman died from injuries received in an early morning crash on March 8.

A Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) press release stated that at 5:45 a.m. a 1997 Chevrolet Lumina operated by Sylvester Gibson, 50, of Belle Glade, was traveling eastbound on Runyan Village Road.

The Chevrolet proceeded to turn left onto U.S. 441 at the same time a 1999 Ford Explorer operated by Samuel Solis Atino, 52, of Pahokee, was traveling southbound on U.S. 441.

The driver of the Ford failed to observe the Chevrolet until it was directly in front of him.

The front of the Ford struck the left side of the Chevrolet.
The Chevrolet came to final rest facing south in the northbound lane of U.S. 441.

The Ford came to final rest on the west grass shoulder, facing northeast.

It was reported that Mr. Gibson and a passenger in his vehicle, Sharon White of Belle Glade, were pronounced deceased at the scene of the accident.

Mr. Atino sustained minor injuries.

The cause of the crash remains under investigation.

The investigating officers were FHP Trooper N. Sendziak and Corporal S. Rudd.

GLADES COUNTY — A Fort Myers man was killed in a one-vehicle accident in Glades County on March 8 just after 5 p.m.

According to the Florida Highway Patrol report, Rolando Saavedra Reyes, 51 of Hollywood, Florida, was driving a 2005 Hyundai Sonata southbound on U.S. 27 near Boar Hammock Ranch Road, when he failed to negotiate a curve. The car travelled onto the grass median and overturned.

A passenger in the vehicle, Alexander Garcia Batan, 49, of Fort Myers was killed in the crash.

According to the report, the driver received minor injuries in the crash.

Both the driver and the passenger were wearing seat belts at the time of the crash. The accident is under investigation by FHP.

Dillan
McCullers

Dillan Marion McCullers, 19, formerly of Okeechobee, and now assigned to the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division at Fort Hood, Texas was arrested on Feb. 24 by the Harker Heights Police Department with cooperation from the Fort Hood Criminal Investigations Command. He was charged with sexual assault and unlawful disclosure of intimate material.

According to Sgt. Stephen Miller, Harker Heights public information officer, on Feb. 10, McCullers went to the home of the victim, sexually assaulted the victim and video-recorded the assault. Bond was set in the amount of $100,000.

GLADES COUNTY — A 49-year-old Fort Myers man died from injuries sustained in a Glades County traffic crash on U.S. 27 near Boar Hammock Ranch Road.

A Florida Highway Patrol press release stated that on March 8 at 5:09 p.m. a 2005 Hyundai Sonata operated by Rolando Saavedra Ryes, 51, of Hollywood, was traveling south on U.S. 27 in the southbound lanes when Mr. Ryes failed to negotiate a curve and traveled onto the grass median. The Sonata overturned and came to final rest on the median facing northwest.

It was reported that Alexander Batan of Fort Myers, a passenger in the Sonata, was pronounced deceased at the scene.

The accident remained under investigation at the time of the press release.

A Palm Bay man was killed early Monday morning, March 11 after reportedly entering the path of oncoming traffic. 26-year-old Jose Emilio Reguero was driving a 2000 Chevrolet Blazer on County Road 68 when he initiated a left turn onto U.S. 441 South and entered the path of a 2006 Chevrolet traveling Northbound. Mr. Reguero’s vehicle was hit on the left side, overturned and came to a rest on the northeast corner of the intersection. The cause of the accident is under investigation.

Kailee Grace Pasley

OKEECHOBEE — The Okeechobee County Sheriff’s Office has reported that 17-year-old Kailee Grace Pasley has been missing since Feb. 23.

Kailee is 5 feet 2 inches tall, 105 pounds, brown eyes, and brown hair.

If you have any information on Kailee’s whereabouts, contact Detective Ted Van Deman at 863-763-3117 ext. 5104 or you may remain anonymous and contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-273-8477.

PALM BEACH COUNTY — A Florida Highway Patrol press release stated that at 1:16 p.m. on March 12, a 2002 Ford Explorer operated by Rodolfo Rivera, 72, of Pahokee, was traveling northbound on U.S. 27 in the inside lane, passing Mile Marker 81 in Palm Beach County.

Mr. Rivera failed to maintain single lane and veered left into the grass median. The Ford swerved to the right and overcorrected, resulting in the vehicle traveling across the travel lanes and entering the outside shoulder and overturning.

It was reported that Mr. Rivera died at the scene of the crash.

The traffic crash remained under investigation at the time of the press release.

PAHOKEE — Five people died Friday, March 8, when a plane crashed into Lake Okeechobee near Pahokee, according to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office.

The plane crash victims have been identified as: Eduardo Mulet, 45, of West Palm Beach; Eric Peterson, 73, Lighthouse Point; Matthew Fiorello, 36, of Palm Beach Gardens; Heather Bridwell, 43, of Jupiter; and, Edwin Mortell, 54, of Stuart.

Mr. Peterson, Ms. Bridwell, Mr. Fiorello and Mr. Mortell III were attorneys with a Florida law firm. Mr. Mulet was the pilot.

The twin-engine Piper aircraft went down in Lake Okeechobee while on approach to Pahokee Airport at approximately 3:30 p.m. Friday, according to a statement from the Federal Aviation Administration. The flight reportedly departed from Sheltair Flight Service at the Tampa International Airport. The plane reportedly experienced engine problems and the pilot tried to land at the Pahokee airport.

PBSO received information that a small airplane went down just north of Pahokee airport, about 400 yards from shore, Friday afternoon. According to the PBSO, a witness originally reported that one individual was observed swimming away from the airplane.

Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office Marine Unit Deputies and Palm Beach County Fire Rescue personnel recovered five individuals from the aircraft fuselage. All individuals were deceased.

The death investigation will be handled by PBSO Violent Crimes Division. The airplane crash will be investigated by the FAA and National Transportation Safety Board.

Special to the Lake Okeechobee News/OCP

OKEECHOBEE — The Okeechobee City Police Department is currently asking the public for its help identifying the subject in this picture. For more information, contact Detective Bettye Taylor at 863-763-9783 or you may remain anonymous and contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-273-8477.

An Okeechobee resident was critically injured after reportedly driving a Club golf cart into the path of an oncoming vehicle on U.S. 98 in Sebring on Tuesday, March 5 at approximately 12:20p.m. 27-year-old Phillip Kinzie was allegedly traveling south across U.S. 98 North from the driveway of the Circle K gas station on U.S. 27 South when he crossed into the path of a 2007 Cadillac Escalade. When the Escalade struck the golf cart, Mr. Kinzie was ejected from the vehicle and onto the southern grassy shoulder and the golf cart traveled back onto U.S. 98 and came to rest in the westbound lane. The driver of the Escalade was uninjured. Mr. Kinzie was transported to Lawnwood Regional Medical Center. According to Florida Highway Patrol Crash Investigator Trooper J. Sapp, charges in the case are pending.

Update from FHP -Mr. Kinzie passed away on March 8. The investigation is ongoing.

Special to the Lake Okeechobee News
ATV stolen on March 13.

Okeechobee Police Department had a 2017 Green Yamaha ATV four-wheeler reported stolen at 4:05 a.m. on Wednesday, March 13. The ATV was on a homemade flatbed trailer and the ignition switch had been cut from the ATV. The ATV has been entered into Florida Crime Information Center (FCIC).

A store captured video of two vehicles involved and at least four people. The video shows three people exiting a vehicle and walking to the location where the ATV was stolen. The trailer with the ATV on it had a lock but the lock had been cut and the trailer was pulled from the yard and attached to a vehicle. Another store camera shows a white four-door dually pulling the trailer on 70 West. The trailer was recovered in the Treasure Island area of Okeechobee on the side of a road but the ATV remains missing.

If you have any information, contact Detective Bettye Taylor at 863-763-9783 at Okeechobee Police Dept or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-273-8477.