Ocala FL

A Leesburg man who failed to pay traffic fines was arrested after an early morning trip through The Villages. A deputy spotted 25-year-old Pedro Yabdiel Maldonado Rivera driving a silver Toyota sedan eastbound on State Road 44 near Brownwood at 5:50 a.m. Thursday, according to an arrest report from the Sumter County...

A Leesburg man will appear in court for a syringe with methamphetamine found near his tent behind Circle K. An employee of Circle K, located at 900 S 14th St., noticed a green tent in the wooded area behind the business at 9:45 a.m. Friday, Nov. 21, according to a case report from the Leesburg Police Department....

OCALA, Fla. – An Ocala woman has admitted to robbing a Marion County bank last spring after a hidden tracking device led police directly to her vehicle. United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe announced that Christina Gates Thagard, 40, pleaded guilty to bank robbery and now faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in...

A Fruitland Park man was arrested for DUI after crashing head-on into a vehicle in the opposite lane while clinically intoxicated. An officer was headed south on U.S. Hwy. 441 when he saw a white Nissan head north in the southbound lanes at 2:15 a.m. Saturday, according to an arrest report from the Eustis Police...

A Villager has entered a plea in court following a standoff last month at her home involving the SWAT team. Jana Stafinsky, 53, continues to be held without bond following the nearly five-hour standoff Nov. 20 at her home at 2186 Broxton Place in the Village of Ashland. She appeared in Sumter County Court this week...

I was amazed to learn that there was not a Trader Joes store closer to Ocala than the one in Gainesville. Marion County over the past 5 years is one of the fastest growing areas in the state. There is plenty of land available both for new construction or repurposing a closed store for use.

A Leesburg man allegedly tried to steal pie crusts and pecans from Walmart a few days before Thanksgiving. Loss prevention employees of Walmart, located at 2501 Citrus Blvd., saw 31-year-old Anthony Bobo skip-scanning items with a female companion at 2:40 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 22, according to a case report from the...

ORLANDO, Fla. – Over the next few days, Central Florida will transition from sunny and warm to rainy and cold as a messy chain of weather systems arrive this weekend. A warmer day is on tap though Friday afternoon as a weakening cold front turns stationary over North Florida. South of that system, southwest winds...

On Tuesday, Dec. 2, construction crews and local officials marked the groundbreaking for the soon-to-open White Castle restaurant in Kissimmee, located at 5828 West Irlo Bronson Memorial Highway (Route 192) at Holiday Trail, near the Old Town Entertainment District. According to the announcement, the new Castle will...

MARION COUNTY, Fla. — A 42-year-old Marion County man has pleaded guilty to federal charges after being caught in an undercover operation targeting child predators. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe announced that Shawn Adampeter Grunther admitted to attempting to entice a minor to engage in sexual activity. According...