PRESS RELEASES

On Sunday, February 7, 2010 at approximately 10:00 p.m., an altercation developed between individuals riding in two vehicles traveling on Twin Lakes road in Eastpoint, Florida.  Several shots were fired from a .22 caliber semi automatic rifle, a 12 gauge shotgun and a Co2 pellet pistol.  During a vehicle chase, an individual, riding in a red Toyota Tundra, fired a pellet pistol, striking the passenger side of a blue Toyota Tundra truck, and also striking Paul Zachary Sanders, who was in the truck.   Sanders’ injury was a minor, superficial wound to the leg.  A shot from a 12 gauge shotgun was fired by an individual in the blue Toyota truck, striking the tailgate of the red Toyota truck, which was occupied by seven individuals.   There were no injuries to individuals in the red Toyota truck. 

As a result of the investigation, Franklin County Sheriff’s Office Investigators arrested and charged three individuals involved in the incident with one count each of Shooting into and Occupied Vehicle and Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon.  An unnamed juvenile was arrested and charged with one count of Shooting into an Unoccupied Vehicle and Aggravated Battery with a Deadly Weapon. 

      The three adults arrested and charged are:

     Jordan Kyle Richards, age 20, of Eastpoint

Paul Zachary Sanders, age 20, of Eastpoint

Johnny Alan Turner, age 20, of Eastpoint

January 26, 2010

 Three Charged with Grand Theft

Agents with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) Tallahassee Regional Operations Center today announce the arrest of Leonard Martin, 48, of Apalachicola, and Nicole Wood, 28, of Tallahassee, for grand theft.

The Franklin County School Board contacted the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office (FCSO) with allegations that Peter R. Brown Construction, Inc. (PRBC) billed them $130,000 for a security system that was never installed.  The FCSO contacted FDLE in February 2009 to investigate.

FDLE’s investigation revealed that PRBC project manager Casey Kelley, 32, of Wewahitchka, worked with Leonard Martin, owner of Martin Security and Purity Temporary Employment (PTE), to misappropriate funds intended for the school board’s security system.  PRBC reimbursed the school board and terminated Kelley after the theft was discovered.

The investigation further revealed that between 2007 and 2008, Kelley and Martin falsified PTE employee timesheets and billed PRBC approximately $817,000 for work on other projects that had not been done.  Martin’s office manager, Nicole Wood, allegedly created fraudulent invoices for time worked and billed PRBC.  Wood facilitated the transactions and Kelley and Martin split the profits.

Kelley and Martin were charged with 43 counts of grand theft; one first-degree felony, 12 second-degree felonies, and 30 third-degree felonies.  Wood was charged with 12 second-degree felonies and 30 third-degree felonies.

Martin was booked in the Franklin County Jail.  Wood was booked in the Leon County Jail. Kelley is expected to turn himself in tonight.

For Further Information Contact:

Heather Smith, Kristen Chernosky or Mike Morrison

FDLE Office of Public Information

(850) 410-7001

January 5, 2010

 Woman Charged in Death of Grandson

The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement are investigating the murder of a 5-year-old boy that occurred Monday in St. George Island, Fla. Marianne Bordt, 71, the boy’s grandmother, was arrested by the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office and charged with first-degree murder.

Bordt and her husband, both German nationals, were vacationing in Florida with their 5-year-old grandson from Roswell, Ga. Investigators allege that when Bordt’s husband went to the store on Monday afternoon, Bordt drowned the boy in the bathtub. An autopsy will be performed today at 1 p.m.  

Bordt was booked into the Franklin County Jail. The Germany Consulate has been contacted.

For Further Information Contact:

Heather Smith, Kristen Chernosky or Mike Morrison

FDLE Office of Public Information

(850) 410-7001

October 05, 2009

On Friday, October 2, 2009,  Members of the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant on the residence of Douglas J. Topham, located at 135 Daisy Street in Eastpoint, Florida. Topham was using two rooms of his mobile home as a marijuana grow operation.  Deputies seized a large quantity of marijuana, Opium seed pods, Morphine and Xanax medication.  One of the rooms was concealed by a false wall designed and constructed for the sole purpose of growing and cultivating marijuana.  Lighting equipment, watering equipment, bedding material, fertilizers and nutrients, and documentation on how to grow marijuana were also seized. Topham is charged with Possession of Marijuana with intent to distribute, Possession of Marijuana, more than 20 grams, Possession of Xanax, Possession of Morphine and Cultivation of Marijuana.  More charges are pending further investigation.  The street value of the Marijuana seized is estimated at $14,000.00 dollars.

July 24, 2009

FRANKLIN COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE FINDS MARIJUANA PLANT'S

On July 23rd, 2009 Deputies and members of the Franklin County Sheriff's Office Narcotics Unit, with assistance of the Florida Department of Agriculture and the Calhoun County Sheriff's Office, Conducted an aerial Marijuana Eradication Operation resulting in the seizure of 285 Marijuana plants. No Arrests have been made to date, however persons of interest are under investigation and charges of Cultivation of Marijuana, 3rd Degree Felony are pending.

July 22, 2009

TWO SUBJECTS ARRESTED IN ARSON CASE

During the morning hours of July 1st , 2009, a houseboat owned by Jimmy Lashley of Apalachicola, located in the St. Marks River, just south of East River Cutoff, was reported on fire and burned. The Franklin County Sheriff's Office and the State Fire Marshall's Office responded to investigate the cause and assess the damage. After a lengthy investigation, Sheriff Skip Shiver announced the arrest of two subjects who were charged with Arson of a Dwelling.

Gregory Scott Finley, 36 yrs old, and Jeremy Joseph Mixon, 22 yrs old of Apalachicola were arrested on the 21st day of July, 2009 and transported to the Franklin County Jail. Both Gregory Finley and Jeremy Mixon are being held on a $ 50,000 bond. Also Mixon has a charge of Violation of Probation , with a hold without bond.

Gregory Finley        Jeremy Mixon

MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND "WHITE TRASH BASH"

A grand total of 113 vessels were boarded, 656 public contacts made, 56 citations and 63 written warnings issued and two people arrested during the annual "White Trash Bash" on Dog Island on Memorial Day weekend. Twenty-one Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers from six counties (Franklin, Gadsden, Gulf, Jefferson, Leon, and Liberty) participated along with six Alcoholic Beverage and Tobacco agents, seven Florida Highway Patrol troopers and eight Franklin County Sheriff's deputies. Violations included boating under the influence, driving under the influence, possession of alcoholic beverages by underage individuals, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, insufficient boating safety equipment, expired vessel registration, excessive speed, driving while license is suspended or revoked, possession of open alcoholic beverage container in vehicle, and failure to wear seat belt. One medical emergency was reported and the individual was transported on the Orion, an FWC offshore patrol vessel, to paramedics waiting on the mainland. The officers used eight patrol vessels and one fixed-wing aircraft to conduct the detail, according to a news release.