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Victim takes the stand during 2nd day of trial for ex-Hialeah PD officer accused of beating up homeless man

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:09 GMT

The trial of a former Hialeah officer accused of kidnapping and beating a homeless man entered day two of testimony, where the victim took the stand. Former Hialeah Police Officer Rafael Otano is accused of kidnapping and beating a homeless man along with former Officer Lorenzo Orfila on December 2022. Witnesses who found the man were heard for the first time on Monday.The victim, Jose Ortega Gutierrez, explained what happened in his own words. “I asked them if we were going to TGK, and they told they me, ‘We’re going to take you for a ride,’” a translator assisting Gutierrez said. “They took me out, they tossed me head first on the floor and they start hitting me, and they were hitting me while I was handcuffed.”The officers were dispatched to the shopping center on the afternoon of Dec. 17 regarding a homeless man who was known to frequent the area.Instead of taking him into custody, they handcuffed the man, put him in a patrol car and drove him to a ...

Bodycam shows beaten Navy veteran describing attack in Miami Beach

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:09 GMT

Newly released body camera footage captured the moments a veteran became the victim of a brutal beach beating. Now, he is describing exactly what happened to him. The police were at the scene at a CVS minutes after the vicious, unprovoked, sudden attack of a 70-year-old Navy veteran in Miami Beach.“You tell us what happened,” an officer said.The body camera footage obtained exclusively by 7News showed the moments after the victim was beaten and bloodied at a Lincoln Road bus stop in late June.His face was soaked in blood while waiting inside the CVS where he was first taken as he waited for help.He told officers about the attack. “This is what happened, I’m waiting over here at the bus stop,” the victim said. “I go to the VA. I volunteer there. I am also a veteran.”The veteran was on his way to help fellow vets at the VA Hospital until his brutal encounter.“He comes by, and he’s on his bike, he gets off his bike, walks around,...

Crews respond to overturned catamaran in Miami

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:09 GMT

A vessel with several people on board was overturned. City of Miami Police and fire rescue units arrived at the scene of the overturned catamaran, located at 3663 S. Miami Ave., Tuesday afternoon. 7Skyforce hovered over the scene as the catamaran lay on its side. Two people were seen in the water.No injuries were reported. Towboats are expected to arrive at the scene to remove the vessel. Please check back on WSVN.com and 7News for more details on this developing story.

Man arrested for leaving unattended bag with firearm inside at West Hollywood Elementary

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:09 GMT

A man was arrested for leaving an unattended bag containing a firearm at a Hollywood school before the official start of school. Hollywood Police responded to West Hollywood Elementary School at 6301 Hollywood Blvd on Friday after a staff member stumbled upon the unattended bag.Prior to the start of the school year, an assembly was held where one of the attending adults, identified as Thomas Richardson, left his gun in an unattended bag near a bookshelf.According to police, Richardson attempted to reclaim the bag, leading to his apprehension by authorities without incident. Richardson, who has since bonded out of jail, was taken into custody and transported to the BSO main jail by the Hollywood Police. He has since been charged with possession of a weapon-firearm on school property.

Florida mother arrested for aggravated manslaughter of 5-year-old son found with cocaine and fentanyl in system

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:09 GMT

The mother of a 5-year-old boy has been arrested for Aggravated Manslaughter of a Child after her son’s tragic death in August 2022. Glendalis Godreau Torres, 26, of Orlando, was arrested Tuesday. According to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, the young boy was found unresponsive and later died at the hospital. A toxicology report revealed the presence of cocaine and fentanyl in his system.Homicide detectives, investigating the circumstances surrounding the boy’s death, determined that the child’s mother was allegedly involved in drug dealing from their residence. The investigation unveiled that the presence of cocaine and fentanyl in the child’s system was linked to his mother’s activities. Glendalis Godreau Torres was taken into custody today in connection with her son’s death.

Kingston man arrested after allegedly placing rocks on on roadway to damage vehicles

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:09 GMT

A 31-year-old Kingston man was arrested Monday after a monthslong investigation into rocks allegedly placed on a local roadway to damage passing vehicles, Kingston police announced. Cameron Currier, 31, was arraigned on Tuesday morning on multiple charges linked to accusations that he placed large rocks in the roadway on Pembroke Street on various days dating back to February. Police in a statement said the rocks weighed between 15 and 50 pounds and damaged multiple vehicles, ripping out undercarriages, causing fluid spills and triggering airbags in some cases. Police said the rocks were placed in the middle of the road along a half-mile span of Pembroke Street near Reed Street, described as a heavily wooded and dark area with no residences directly abutting it. “Clearly, this was incredibly dangerous,” police said.Local driver Dustin Starr said he was driving home back in April when he hit a 50-pound rock in the road. “It just launched up, we went way up an...

Feds approve offshore wind farm south of Rhode Island and Martha’s Vineyard

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:09 GMT

A planned offshore wind farm moved a step closer to construction Tuesday with the Department of the Interior announcing it has approved the project, to be located in federal waters near Rhode Island south of Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts.The Revolution Wind project will have an estimated capacity of more than 700 megawatts of renewable energy, capable of powering nearly 250,000 homes, and is expected to create about 1,200 jobs during construction, regulators said.It’s the department’s fourth approval of a commercial-scale, offshore wind energy project, joining the Vineyard Wind project off Massachusetts, the South Fork Wind project off Rhode Island and New York, and the Ocean Wind 1 project off New Jersey.The Revolution Wind project is another step toward the Biden administration’s goal of developing 30 gigawatts of offshore wind energy capacity by 2030, said U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland.“Together with industry, labor and partners fr...

Manchester, NH Police look to ID suspect seen walking away with safe after burglary

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:09 GMT

Police in Manchester are asking for the public’s help as they work to identify a man who was seen breaking into a business and walking off with a safe earlier in the summer.The Manchester Police Department said they were initially called to the Waterworks Café on Commercial Street on the night of July 12 after receiving a report of a burglary.Authorities went on to review surveillance video that showed a suspect breaking into the building before exiting with safe in tow. According to the police department, the suspect then got into a dark-colored SUV and headed north on Commercial Street.On Tuesday, Aug. 22, the department shared several images from that night, including the suspect, who police described as having a possible height of 5’9” to 6’1” and weight of 160-180 pounds. He was also said to have been wearing a sweatshirt, baggy pants, black shoes, a mask, and gloves during the incident.Anyone who recognizes the suspect or the vehicle is asked to contact Manchester Police...

Somerville drivers frustrated with number of speed bumps as city plans to install more

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:09 GMT

On the streets of Somerville, its driver beware with nearly 30 speed bumps spread throughout the city. Some drivers have said they’re frustrated with the number of speed bumps in the area, with some saying the bumps are damaging their cars. Officials, though, say the bumps are in place to keep driver’s safe. Moving forward, there is also a plan to install more bumps.“I just find that they are a little bit too close together and they are hard to see,” said Kelley Korf-Uzan. Heddy Stern has mixed feelings about the speed bumps. “For a while, especially at night, if you were driving, you would just have no idea where the speed bumps were and that was pretty difficult,” Stern said. Somerville decided to look into the effectiveness of speed bumps in 2019 after a hit-and-run crash left a pedestrian dead and police searching for the driver responsible. Years later, Dom Wise, who favors speed bumps, said he thinks the bumps “are important for the flow of traffic and...

UPS workers approve 5-year contract, capping contentious negotiations that threatened deliveries

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:09 GMT

By HALELUYA HADERO and MATT OTT (AP Business Writers)The union representing 340,000 UPS workers said Tuesday that its members voted to approve the tentative contract agreement reached last month, putting a final seal on contentious labor negotiations that threatened to disrupt package deliveries for millions of businesses and households nationwide. The Teamsters said in a statement that 86% of the votes casts were in favor of ratifying the contract. They also said it was passed by the highest vote for a contract in the history of the Teamsters at UPS. The union also said more than 40 supplemental agreements were also ratified, expect for one that covers roughly 170 members in Florida. The national master agreement will go into effect as soon as that supplement is renegotiated and ratified, it said. “Our members just ratified the most lucrative agreement the Teamsters have ever negotiated at UPS,” Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien said in a statement. R...