Harder Hall Creditors Offered Half What’s Owed
By MANDY SHEETS

SEBRING — Businesses that completed work on Harder Hall may only see half the money they are owed, according to a redevelopment plan filed Wednesday.

Marc Shenker and Joran Realty filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Oct. 20, 2006, which requires the company to form a reorganization plan.
Jim McCollum, an attorney representing creditors holding unsecured claims, said the plan submitted Wednesday is substantially different than what Shenker originally promised.

“They misrepresented to the court what they planned to do,” McCollum said. “They said my clients would be paid in full, and now they are changing their story.”

All general unsecured creditors, who are collectively owed more than $626,000, will receive 50 percent of their claims, according to the plan.
Claims of about $5.2 million to the city of Sebring, $1.05 million to Historic Harder Hall Inc. and $150,956 to the Highlands County Tax Collector will be paid in full without dispute.

Shenker is disputing a handful of other claims, including $62,448 to Atlantis Electrical Services and $307,600 to Bristol August, Inc., and the court will determine what amount, if any, will be paid.

About 160 creditors have filed claims against the hotel, including 63 Sebring businesses and 11 businesses and contractors in Highlands County.
McCollum said the redevelopment plan, as presented, would not reimburse businesses fairly for their work.

“If they are allowed to do that, it will impact the people of Sebring who dealt with this man in good faith,” McCollum said. “There are a lot of good businesses who he dealt with and told he would pay.”

Meanwhile, the city has filed a motion that would allow foreclosure on the mortgage, which will be heard at a Feb. 14 hearing in Miami. City Attorney Bob Swaine could not be reached for comment about the motion before deadline.

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Police Suspect ATM Thefts Linked
SAY FIVE OR SIX OTHER BANKS
HIT IN SOUTH FLORIDA

By JOE SEELIG

LAKE PLACID — Police investigators suspect the thefts of at least two other ATM thefts in South Florida may be linked to a suspect now in custody in Highlands County.

Based upon an investigation by the Lake Placid Police Department into the Dec. 31 theft of an ATM machine from the Lake Placid branch of Highlands Independent Bank, the Hendry County Sheriff’s Office arrested Clewiston resident Jesus Antonio Sanchez, 42, of 1806 Matthew Loop on Jan. 24.

Sanchez was booked Jan. 26 into Highlands County Jail on charges of burglary of a structure or conveyance, grand theft more than $100,000 and committing grand theft using a vehicle to damage a property and is being held on $31,000 bail.

The subjects stole an excavator machine from the Walgreens work site at Interlake Boulevard, broke out the machine, loaded it onto a truck and hauled it away.

Witnesses to the Lake Placid case reportedly saw two men using a bulldozer late on New Year’s Eve, doing something suspicious with another piece of heavy equipment at the site from which the Highlands Independent Bank’s ATM was later recovered, unopened.

The witnesses reportedly approached the suspects and asked them what they were doing. Unconvinced, they called the sheriff’s office.
It was called in as a burglary in progress, off of State Road 70, southeast of Lake Placid. Highlands County sheriff’s deputies who arrived at the scene about 9:15 p.m. found the ATM dumped into a canal.

Someone reportedly returned to the site about 11 a.m. the following day.

“We believe there is a ring of them,” said Lake Placid police officer James Fansler. “We’re the first
this far north. There have been five or six similar incidents in other counties.”

Fansler said that on Dec. 13, a Cape Coral bank’s ATM was similarly victimized as the Highlands Independent Bank. And before that on Oct. 27 the Old Cypress Bank was burglarized in Clewiston. Sanchez is a suspect in both cases, Fansler said.

Sanchez became a suspect when the Clewiston Police Department provided Fansler with Sanchez’s photograph. The witnesses immediately and independently of each other identified Sanchez as one of the two men they saw that night, from a six-photo lineup, according to a Lake Placid arrest narrative.

Sanchez reportedly worked briefly for the Gulf Group Inc., the construction company doing the work at the site where the ATM was recovered.

The superintendent, Ken Barry, for the Gulf Group, told police that Sanchez would have had access to the job site and the combinations to the locks. A locked combination lock was opened without force to access the gate to the construction site.

Barry told police that Sanchez was hired as a heavy equipment operator, had operated an excavator, like the one used at the Walgreens site to steal the ATM, and a bulldozer, like the one used to attempt to open the ATM vault.

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By JOE SEELIG

SEBRING — A Sebring man remained in Highlands County Jail in lieu of $500 bail Monday after Sebring police said he left the scene of a crash at Schumacher Road and U.S. 27.
Police report at about 6:54 p.m. Friday, the man rammed the back of a 2002 Ford Ranger pickup truck stopped at the southbound light on U.S. 27 with a blue Chevrolet S-10 pickup truck with an American flag in the rear windshield.
The driver, age 49, whose name is being withheld by Highlands Today, reportedly left the scene, driving west on Schumacher Road.
What he may not have known was a witness to the crash followed the suspect pickup truck to the 3000 block of Michigan Avenue.
While police interviewed the driver of the Ford, the witness led police to the pickup truck parked in a driveway. Damage to the front of the Chevrolet was consistent with the damage at the scene. A grill from the S-10 pickup truck was recovered at the crash.
When questioned by police the man reportedly said, “Just take me to jail,” to which police obliged him.
He was charged with leaving the scene of a crash with property damage and driving with no valid driver’s license, both second-degree misdemeanors.
No one in either vehicle was injured, according to the arrest report. However, there was about $13,000 in combined damages.

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By CHRIS BUTLER

MUG SHOT LABELED MOORE

SEBRING — Lorida resident Kenneth Ray Moore promised Highlands County law enforcement officers he and his lawyer “would own the sheriff’s department” after his arrest last year.
But it was an empty promise.
Moore, 45, 341 Fairview Lane, won’t be making any claims on the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office anytime soon.
He was convicted last week on charges including driving under the influence, leaving the scene of an accident, three counts of resisting an officer with violence and two counts of property damage.
He was sentenced to three years in the Florida State Prison, according to the Highlands County Clerk of Courts Office. 
The charges stem from a January 2006 incident in which arriving Highlands County Sheriff’s deputies said they found Moore’s vehicle crashed in a nearby pasture after striking a telephone pole and fence near U.S. 98 and the Pine Island Ranch. Deputies said Moore was under the influence of alcohol at the scene. 
Deputies reported later speaking with a witness to the crash when Moore became angry and began yelling obscenities at deputies before walking away. 
Moore continued walking away despite being told to stay where he was or he would be arrested, according to one deputy. 
Deputies reported Moore pushed one deputy “with a great force” causing him to lose his balance.
The same deputy said Moore later pushed his upper arm, prompting him and two other deputies to physically force Moore to the ground.
The report said Moore still resisted before being handcuffed and taken to the Highlands County Jail.
Moore told FHP officers visiting him at the jail later that night that he was “run off the road.”
It was an FHP officer who reported Moore’s threat to the sheriff’s department. 

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Who Are The Nuts On Your Family Tree?
GENEALOGICAL WORKSHOP HELD

By BILL RETTEW JR.

SEBRING — Most of the workshop might have centered around old news, but two dozen attendees discovered new ways to learn about their ancestors through genealogy.

The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) held a genealogical workshop Saturday at the Church of the Latter Day Saints in Sebring.

Guest speaker Linda Soloski, DAR Florida state lineage regional chair, told the group that her ancestors included female spies for the Revolutionary and Civil Wars, plus a accused witch who was burned at the stake in Salem, Mass., and was pardoned by President Bill Clinton.
Soloski said that researching into the past in search of a family history is addictive.

“Shake your family tree and then watch all of the nuts fall out,” quipped Soloski. “Through genealogy we’re looking for a better class of ancestors.”

Soloski noted several ways to conduct a genealogical search:

u Begin with yourself. Don’t try at first to reach out to great, great, great ancestors. Your family begins with you. Don’t fall into
the trap that everybody does and try to reach out for somebody famous.

u Prepare a five generation chart, filling in the names for the family tree.

u Adopt a plan of organization and collect all available materials.

u Soloski said solid information might be culled during each of three life experiences.

“Your relatives have three things in common,” she said.  “Each was ‘hatched’ (born), each was ‘matched’ married and if each is no longer with us, they were ‘dispatched.’ (deceased.)”

u Use libraries, including the genealogy center at the Lake Placid Memorial Library.

u The Latter Day Saints are widely acclaimed for the church’s Family History Centers and the research facility in Salt Lake City.

u The Internet is a good tool, but Soloski warns that not all information gleaned can be deemed “most reliable.”

u Take advantage of any books published about your family.

u Family heirloom Bibles often contain a family tree.

u Use old Wills and personal papers.

u Court records are some of the best sources.

u Indexes of, logs from and searches of graveyards add extra information.

u Talk to relatives and others. Listen to family stories.

Soloski said her search started in 1977 and it then accelerated when she joined the DAR in the mid-90s and how it changed her.

“It has reshaped who I am,” she said. “I was just a little girl from the hills of Tennessee.

“When I discovered what my progenitors had done it gave me a sense of purpose to do something for my generation and future generations that is beneficial.”

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Realtors Recognized During Banquet
By BILL ROGERS

SEBRING – More than 200 real estate agents packed the Sebring Civic Center Friday night to honor their own during the annual Heartland Association of Realtors Installation and Awards Banquet.

The top honor was the 2006 Realtor of the Year. The award was presented to Dawn Dell of Dell Realty.

Janice “JP” Pantoja of RE/MAX Realty Plus was named the 2006 Association Affiliate.

The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Exit Realty All Stars’ Lucy Saldarini for 40 more than years of service and dedication to the real estate industry. Saldarini is the first recipient of the new award.

There were two winners of the Congeniality Award – Jeanne Lee Butler of Keller Williams and Sue Dean of RE/MAX Realty Plus.

There were also two winners of the Rookie of the Year Award, which recognizes the accomplishments of sales agents who have been in the business less than two years. Rachel Murphy of Keller Williams and Alfredo Perez of Exit Realty All Stars received the awards.

The Hall of Fame Award was given to Linda Boring of RE/MAX Realty Plus.

The Affiliate of the Year award went to Heartland National Bank. Melissa Stanley accepted the award for the bank.

The officers and directors for 2007 were installed. They include: Debbie Williams, president; Gayle Labanowitz, president elect; Teresa Bock, vice president; JoAnn Sutton and Nancy Wood, treasurer.

The directors are: Perry Carter, Kathy Godwin, Ed Wardle, James Donohue and Al Harmon.

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SEBRING — A freak accident occured at Sebring Reginal Airport when an ultralight plane took off but was blown down by a corporate jet flying overhead trying to land.

Sebring Regional Airport’s two runways are busy this time of the year with hundreds of takeoffs and landings each day. As the ultralight aircraft became airborne Friday morning, with an instructor pilot and student pilot, the jet flew over it, said Highlands County Sheriff’s Lt. Jess
Purvis.
“They got caught in the jet wash of the bigger plane and it wound up slamming them into the ground.”

The older man, the student pilot, was hurt with possibly a broken ankle and scrapes, Purvis said. The middle-aged instructor pilot appeared to have suffered only minor injuries.

The jet, with two pilots, landed safely on the 5,200-foot asphalt runway. The eight-passenger Raytheon Aircraft Hawker 850 is registered in Mexico.

“We just don’t know what happened,” said Mike Willingham, executive director of Sebring Regional Airport.

Willingham said the ultralight is owned by Float Planes and Amphibs, a company based at the airport.

The injured instructor pilot works for aircraft company, which specializes in recreational fixed-wing airplanes, weight-shift aircraft, powered parachutes and accessories.

Sebring Regional Airport, as most small airports, is pilot controlled – there is no operational control tower and no air traffic controllers. Pilots communicate their position and intentions by radio and also monitor the airport’s radio frequency (UNICOM - 122.7) to be informed of nearby aircraft.

The level of flight activity at the airport does not warrant a control tower at this time, Willingham said, but that may change in three to five years.

The jet pilots communicated their position at three points along their landing approach – downwind, base and final, he said.

The accident has been documented and the FFA notified, Willingham said. Federal investigators were expected to arrive at the airport either late Friday or early Saturday..

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Detectives Release Dead Woman’s Name
FIRST HARDEE HOMICIDE SINCE 2005
By JOE SEELIG

FORT GREEN SPRINGS — The Hardee County Sheriff’s Office released the name Thursday of a woman whose body was discovered Monday by an employee inspecting a Florida Gas Transmission Company pipeline, north of Fort Green Springs.

Sheriff’s investigators estimate the body of Holly Lynne LaFlower, 26, of Punta Gorda, had been there for about three to four days; about Jan. 19 or 20.

It was the county’s first homicide for the year and the first since 2005, when it recorded two.

Her body was found in a remote area, about 1,000 feet in from State Road 663 and State Road 664.

Investigators initially sought family members in Punta Gorda, but were only able to locate an ex-mother-in-law. That isn’t a close enough relative, Hardee County sheriff’s Maj. Claude Harris said Thursday.

“The family is in Vermont,” said Harris. “That’s why it took a while.”

LaFlower’s death is being investigated as a homicide.

The medical examiner has indicated her death was caused by trauma to the torso, Harris said.

Detectives are still trying to determine if she was killed at the scene or if she was killed somewhere else and her body dumped there, Harris said.

No vehicle was located near the body and LaFlower’s dark blue 1989 Mercury Cougar, with a Fla. Tag, U72-OAH, is missing, Harris said.  The vehicle may have damage to the drivers door, has a cartoon decal of Tigger on the back glass, and some windows may be broken out.

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Civil Traffic Cases Double In 2006
By CHRIS BUTLER

SEBRING — Highlands County’s court docket saw a noticeable increase in 2006.

Highlands County Clerk of Court spokesman Bob Germain said the court’s docket increased in 2006 in both circuit criminal and juvenile cases.

But the court’s most dramatic increase over 2005 numbers was in its civil traffic cases, which nearly doubled.

Courthouse Docket
Germain released the following facts about the county’s 2006 courthouse docket compared to 2005’s.

u The number of court hearings in 2006 was 12,372 compared to 11,670 in 2005.

u Circuit criminal cases increased from 6,948 in 2005 to 7,284 in 2006.

u The number of juvenile court cases in 2006 was 1,399, compared to 983 in 2005.

u Civil traffic cases increased from 615 in 2005 to 1,084 in 2006.

Population Increase
Highlands County Court officials could offer no reason for the increase Thursday. The increased court docket is coinciding with an increase in the county’s overall population.

The county’s previous migration trend was usually that of upper and middle-class northerners who stay throughout the winter months, according to Highlands County Sheriff Susan Benton. But that’s changing.

Benton said earlier this month that increasing numbers of younger families and retiring baby boomers are coming to the area from the state’s southeastern and southwestern coasts.

Assistant State Attorney Steve Houchin said the increase in the court docket hasn’t escaped his attention.

“Our office over the years has certainly seen an increase in its docket and now our staff. We’re at 11 lawyers now and just added one over the past year. It’s been a steady progression,” Houchin said Thursday.

Other trends Benton said her office is noticing include more growth in Highlands County’s unincorporated areas than in its surrounding two cities and one town.

Meanwhile, calls for service to the sheriff’s office have increased, she added.

Vehicle registrations in Highlands County have increased 32 percent, Benton said.

Traffic Citations

The number of traffic citations issued in 2006 differed from 2005.

Sebring Police Inspector Lamar Forbes reported an increase of 3,575 traffic citations handed out in 2006, as opposed to 2,495 in 2005.

“My crystal ball is a little bit cloudy on the reason for the increase. More traffic is the reason no doubt,” Forbes said.

Avon Park Police Department Records Custodian Linda LaPointe said Avon Park Police officers gave out 2,475 citations in 2006, compared to 1,877 in 2005.

But the town of Lake Placid experienced a decrease, according to Lake Placid Police Department Office Manager Gloria Pettis.
She said 776 traffic citations were handed out in 2006, compared to 1,049 in 2005. 

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Detectives Release Dead Woman’s Name
FIRST HARDEE HOMICIDE SINCE 2005
By JOE SEELIG

FORT GREEN SPRINGS — The Hardee County Sheriff’s Office released the name Thursday of a woman whose body was discovered Monday by an employee inspecting a Florida Gas Transmission Company pipeline, north of Fort Green Springs.

Sheriff’s investigators estimate the body of Holly Lynne LaFlower, 26, of Punta Gorda, had been there for about three to four days; about Jan. 19 or 20.

It was the county’s first homicide for the year and the first since 2005, when it recorded two.

Her body was found in a remote area, about 1,000 feet in from State Road 663 and State Road 664.

Investigators initially sought family members in Punta Gorda, but were only able to locate an ex -mother-in-law. That isn’t a close enough relative, Hardee County sheriff’s Maj. Claude Harris said Thursday.

“The family is in Vermont,” said Harris. “That’s why it took a while.”

LaFlower’s death is being investigated as a homicide.

The medical examiner has indicated her death was caused by trauma to the torso, Harris said.

Detectives are still trying to determine if she was killed at the scene or if she was killed somewhere else and her body dumped there, Harris said.

No vehicle was located near the body and LaFlower’s dark blue 1989 Mercury Cougar, with a Fla. tag, U72-OAH, is missing, Harris said.  The vehicle may have damage to the driver’s door, has a cartoon decal of Tigger on the back glass, and some windows may be broken out.

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Detectives Release Dead Woman’s Name
FIRST HARDEE HOMICIDE SINCE 2005
By JOE SEELIG

FORT GREEN SPRINGS — The Hardee County Sheriff’s Office released the name Thursday of a woman whose body was discovered Monday by an employee inspecting a Florida Gas Transmission Company pipeline, north of Fort Green Springs.

Sheriff’s investigators estimate the body of Holly Lynne LaFlower, 26, of Punta Gorda, had been there for about three to four days; about Jan. 19 or 20.

It was the county’s first homicide for the year and the first since 2005, when it recorded two.

Her body was found in a remote area, about 1,000 feet in from State Road 663 and State Road 664.

Investigators initially sought family members in Punta Gorda, but were only able to locate an ex-mother-in-law. That isn’t a close enough relative, Hardee County sheriff’s Maj. Claude Harris said Thursday.

“The family is in Vermont,” said Harris. “That’s why it took a while.”

LaFlower’s death is being investigated as a homicide.

The medical examiner has indicated her death was caused by trauma to the torso, Harris said.

Detectives are still trying to determine if she was killed at the scene or if she was killed somewhere else and her body dumped there, Harris said.

No vehicle was located near the body and LaFlower’s dark blue 1989 Mercury Cougar, with a Fla. tag, U72-OAH, is missing, Harris said.  The vehicle may have damage to the driver’s door, has a cartoon decal of Tigger on the back glass and some windows may be broken out.

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SEBRING – Tonight’s qualifying round of Heartland Idol Jr. was postponed due to inclement weather.
The event is rescheduled for Feb. 1, with a second qualifying round slated for the following week on Feb. 8. Both shows will start at 6 p.m. at the downtown Circle.
The finals will take place on the big stage at the Highlands County Fair as scheduled. The downtown gallery walk will go on as planned.

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Sebring Near The Top For Retirees
By BILL RETTEW

SEBRING — Sebring is affordable, warm and a retiree magnet.

We know that.

But there is more to Sebring that even its residents realize.

Of all the places to relocate, retirees find Sebring among the most attractive – or so a magazine claims.

“Where to Retire” magazine pegs Sebring at No. 26 on a list of the 100 most popular places to retire.

Sebring’s cost of living was rated at below average, with 4,659 retirees moving from out of state from 1995 to 2000.

Phoenix topped the list with an average cost of living and 41,000 net retirees who relocated.

Author Mary Lu Abbott gathered much of her non-subjective rankings from “Retirement Migration in America” by Charles F. Longino Jr., published by Vacation Publications.

The demographer and gerontologist, from Wake Forest University in North Carolina, studied U.S. Census data from 1960-2000 to track interstate movement for people 60 and over.

Mary and George Thomas Sr. are semi-retired and live part time near Washington, D.C. They discovered Sebring, and particularly the Spring Lake community, through word of mouth and a magazine article.

“We bought a villa,” said George Thomas. “It was priced too good to turn down. A lot of our friends gravitated to one coast or another but it’s crowded and expensive.”

The times are changing. Since Longino last looked at the numbers and made a similar list 10 years ago, Florida lost some of its luster for retirees. Sebring dropped two spots from No. 24.

Last decade, 22 of the top 25 destinations were in Florida. The most recent figures show only 16 of those top 25 are now in the Sunshine State.
Several places in Florida dropped big time: Miami-Dade went from No. 16 to 53; Pensacola area dropped from No. 42 to No. 98; and Fort Walton Beach-Destin slid from 65 to 100.

Nevada, Arizona, South Carolina and even Delaware stole some of the spotlight from Florida.

Abbott talked about the partial shift to the north.

“There’s more interest in four-season destinations than there used to be,” said Abbott in a phone interview. “They miss the change of seasons.”
They don’t want to “freeze to death” so retirees likely “escape” to a warmer area in the “dead of winter,” Abbott added.

The editor also noticed a trend for retirees to move from Florida’s East Coast to the West Coast and to Central Florida.

“Florida lost its allure since it got populated,” said the editor. “Although it’s still very, very popular.”

Russ and Lois Vaughn enjoy the lack of congestion in Sebring. Lois Vaughn enjoys all the activities at Buttonwood Bay.

The couple splits their time between Myrtle Beach, S.C. and Florida. Lois Vaughn plays bocce ball three times per week and enjoys the subdivision’s miniature golf.

Marti Hood dislikes the cloudy days in Indiana and enjoys regular Florida sunshine. She lived in several Florida locations during the past 15 years, but prefers the lack of traffic in Highlands County and the “friendly and nice people in a small town atmosphere.”

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Body Found In Hardee

By JOE SEELIG

FORT GREEN SPRINGS — Hardee County Sheriff’s Office investigators have identified the body of a woman discovered about 1:30 p.m. Monday, north of Fort Green Springs.

Her identity is being withheld pending notification of her next of kin.

The woman’s body was discovered by an employee of the Florida Gas Transmission Company as he was inspecting the gas line in the vicinity of State Road 663 and S.R. 664.

Investigators believe her body had been there about three to four days.

According to the report, released Tuesday, the sheriff’s office is classifying this as a homicide.

“Our investigators are following some leads,” said sheriff’s Maj. Claude Harris on Wednesday, but they were not ready to release the cause of death.

Harris did not believe the dead woman was from Hardee County.

Her body was found outside of Fort Green Springs more than 1,000 feet from the paved road, Harris said.

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Man Charged with Attempted Internet Sex Crime Faces Arraignment

By CHRIS BUTLER

SEBRING — A Winter Haven man is scheduled for arraignment Wednesday on charges he tried to arrange and then broadcast an online sexual encounter with a 17-year-old Highlands County high school student.

According to the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office, Jeffrey Bryan Gaswint, E. Thomas Woodlane Road, went to an abandoned Avon Park parking lot Dec. 14 intending to meet the 17-year old.

He instead met Highlands County Sheriff’s deputies.

He was charged with using a computer service to seduce or solicit a child, possession of methamphetamine and four counts of distributing obscene material to a minor.

Sheriff’s deputies said they became aware of Gaswint in November after receiving a complaint at their Lake Placid sub-station from both the 17-year-old and his aunt.

The high school student said he received a photograph from a man named “Jeff,” containing a photo of the man’s private parts in a sexually aroused state.

The high-school student said he was later alerted by an unknown man named “Jeff” on his cell phone.

Shortly after sending the nude picture of himself, deputies said “Jeff” sent three additional fully nude shots of his entire body, knowing he was sending them to a 17-year-old.

“The defendant made the comment to the victim that he did not mind the fact that he (the high schooler) was only 17. If he didn’t mind the fact that he (”Jeff” was 37,” deputies said in their arrest report.

Parking Lot Arrest

Sheriff’s deputies said “Jeff” was actually 42-year-old Gaswint, who called the 17-year-old exactly 20 more times throughout the following two weeks. They said Gaswint was trying to arrange a meeting.

Gaswint said he “wanted to meet with the victim because the victim’s voice sounded sexy,” deputies reported.

In a phone conversation recorded by deputies, Gaswint reportedly informed the 17-year-old he wanted the two to visit an area motel room and broadcast themselves having sex over the Internet.

Sheriff’s deputies said they secretly positioned themselves at the parking lot of the old Food Lion grocery store in Avon Park in December, when Gaswint and the 17-year-old agreed to meet there.

But the high school student wasn’t present when sheriff’s deputies stopped Gaswint and arrested him.

Deputies said methamphetamine was found in his pants pocket. 

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