Three Charged With Robbery, Carjacking
By JOE SEELIG

SEBRING — Meeting new people and making new acquaintances can be fun, but an 18-year-old Sebring man learned earlier last week it can also be dangerous.

The victim reported he was beaten and robbed after he went to hang out with three people he just met on the night of March 6.

He reported as he traveled to a residence on Dauphine Street and Porsche Avenue and began walking with two men and a woman, he was attacked from behind, then beaten repeatedly.

Once he was beaten up, he was stripped of his clothing and robbed of his money, authorities said. He was left in a wooded area near the intersection, and his 2005 pickup truck, including money in the truck, was taken, authorities added. He estimated the total cash taken was about $300.

Sheriff’s deputies are not saying how they came to identify the suspects except that the victim picked one of the suspects from a photo lineup.

Two of three suspects sought in connection with the robbery and carjacking of a Sebring man last week were in Highlands County Jail on Monday.

A third suspect was free on bail.

Deputies arrested Andrew Blanton Walterman, 19, of 1242 Melody Lane, Sebring, on charges of robbery without a firearm or weapon and carjacking without a firearm or weapon. He was being held on $20,000 bail.

Cory Vincent Roque, 19, of 730 Lakeside Drive, Sebring, was arrested at the jail, where he was already incarcerated on charges of obstructing a law enforcement officer, burglary, third-degree grand theft and petty theft.

According to reports, Roque was a suspect in the burglary of a neighbor’s home on March 9, and grand theft of the neighbor’s 2003 Honda. He was apprehended at the Lakeshore Mall after allegedly running from a deputy while walking on Crane Street.

Roque was then charged with robbery without a firearm or weapon and carjacking without a firearm or weapon. He was being held without bond.

Free on $20,000 bail was Shannon Nicole Sands, 18, of 1344 Oak Run, Avon Park, booked on charges of robbery with no firearm or weapon and carjacking without a firearm or weapon.