04

LAKE PLACID -- Three people have been arrested after deputies broke up a large rooster fighting operation Sunday night (Feb. 3) in Lake Placid. Deputies went to the home at 211 Twilight Drive in Lake Placid after an anonymous complaint. They arrived to find a large number of cars parked in front of the home and could hear music and voices coming from the woods behind the home. When they followed the noise, they saw a U-shaped arena surrounded by people, most of whom fled into the woods when

February

2019

30

SEBRING -- Kevin Ray Barber, a local mechanic who was arrested in March of last year and eventually charged with more than 200 felonies and misdemeanors in relation to his business practices, has been sentenced to three years in state prison followed by 12 years of probation. Barber, who owned South Side Auto and Diesel in Sebring and formerly owned Kevin’s 4-Wheel Drive in Lake Placid, pled no contest on Jan. 29 and was adjudicated guilty on one felony count of uttering a worthless check and

January

2019

26

SEBRING -- The Highlands County Sheriff’s Office is conducting a death investigation involving one of its members. Sgt. Max Van D’Huynslager, 42, died Saturday morning, Jan. 26. Initial indications are his death was self-inflicted. He leaves behind a wife and an 8-year-old daughter. Sgt. Van D’Huynslager had 15 years and 5 months of law enforcement service, and joined the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office on March 5, 2008. He was promoted to Sergeant of the Tactical Anti-Crime Unit on January

January

2019

17

LAKE PLACID  -- An 18-year-old from Lake Placid was arrested Wednesday, Jan. 16 and charged with two felonies after conducting a traffic stop on a 20-year-old who was riding an ATV on a paved road. On Jan. 4, detectives were given a video of the Dec. 28 stop recorded by the victim. The 12-minute video showed Harrison Alexander Howes, who was wearing a shirt with a fire/rescue emblem on it, asking the victim several law enforcement-type questions such as his address and if he had any weapons in

January

2019

04

AVON PARK -- An Avon Park woman was arrested for animal cruelty after Highlands County Sheriff’s Office deputies discovered she had more than 70 animals inside her home on Thursday, Jan. 3. Jinece Elizabeth Loughry, 66, was charged with 72 counts of animal cruelty after 49 live animals (42 dogs, eight cats and one bird) were taken from her 1,002-square-foot home at 1367 Memorial Drive. An additional 23 dead animals were also found in the home. Some of them were in such advanced states of

January

2019