Latest news with #Acosta
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
Two arrested during anti-dirt bike detail in Springfield
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – Two Springfield men were arrested during an anti-dirt bike public safety detail last Friday. In a news release from the Springfield Police Department, officers were called to Laconia Street for a report of a dirt bike disturbance. Upon arrival, they spoke with 29-year-old Luis Rivera of Springfield, informing him that if he rode his dirt bike on the street, he was subject to arrest. Hampden County leaders announce illegal dirt bike enforcement Police say Riveria then sped past the officer on the dirt bike. At around 4:40 p.m., officers located Rivera at a gas station on Boston Road, where police seized the dirt bike, and he was arrested and charged with the following: Operating a Motor Vehicle with a Suspended License Snow-Recreation Vehicle – Public Way Violation Motorcycle Equipment Violation In the area of Bay and Girard Streets, at around 6:10 p.m. officers observed an electric off-highway vehicle, later identified as 37-year-old Gamalier Acosta of Springfield. They later saw Acosta riding it with two small children without any helmets. Officers located Acosta near the intersection of Bay and Catharine Streets. The off-highway vehicle was seized, and he was arrested and charged with the following: Operating a Motor Vehicle with a Suspended License Snow/Recreation Vehicle – Public Way Violation Snow/Recreation Vehicle – Negligent Operation of a Motor Vehicle Snow/Recreation Vehicle – Helmet Violation Snow/Recreation Vehicle – Unregistered Arrest Warrant The police conduct these details to deter public safety hazards to themselves and other motorists and pedestrians. It is illegal to ride a dirt bike or any off-highway vehicle anywhere within the city of Springfield. In April, the city announced a new task force that will bring more law enforcement patrols and resources like drones to reduce the use of illegal dirt bikes and off-highway vehicles (OHVs) on the streets. 'We can find them where they're being housed, and then we're going to grab them, warrant, we're going to hold them,' said Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Docs: Aunt arrested after toddler smokes from vape
EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – A 20-year-old woman was arrested after her 1-year-old nephew smoked from her THC vape on Friday, May 16, according to court documents obtained by KTSM. El Paso County Sheriff's Office: Aunt arrested after child eats illegal narcotics As we previously reported, Vianney Alyssa Acosta, 20, was charged with possession of a controlled substance and child endangerment. She was then booked into the El Paso County Detention Facility with a $6,000 bond, the Sheriff's Office said. According to court documents, the Sheriff's Office was dispatched on May 16 to the 13200 block of Walker Post Avenue to assist El Paso Fire about a 1-year-old boy having trouble breathing due to 'smoking a THC vape.' The boy had 'droopy eyes' and was trying to go to sleep. The Sheriff's Office met with the boy's grandmother, who stated that she, the boy's dad, and the boy's aunt, later identified as Acosta, were taking care of the boy while they were eating in the kitchen area, according to court documents. According to court documents, the grandmother said she went to the restroom, and Acosta heard the boy coughing. Acosta stood up and went to check on the boy, who was inside her bedroom. The grandmother said the boy had the THC vape in his hand. The Sheriff's Office asked the grandmother if she knew what the vape contained, and she said 'weed.' She also said the vape belonged to Acosta and that she knew Acosta used THC vapes, according to court documents. According to court documents, the grandmother said the boy's mother was at work when the incident occurred. The Sheriff's Office met with Acosta, who identified herself as the boy's aunt. She said she had her THC vape somewhere in her room, where she thought the boy couldn't reach it, according to court documents. According to court documents, Acosta showed the Sheriff's Office where the vape was originally located. She pointed to a white nightstand, which was located right next to her bed on her right-hand side. Acosta also said the boy has ways to get into the bed and reach out for things. She said the THC vape was 'out in the open with just miscellaneous items on top covering it.' according to court documents. According to court documents, Acosta said the vape contained THC, and that she didn't see the boy holding the vape when she entered her room, but she noticed he was red, coughing, and observed a little bit of smoke. Acosta said she assumed the boy inhaled the vape because of the side effects of using THC vapes, according to court documents. 'It makes you cough because it burns your throat,' Acosta said while describing the effects. According to court documents, the Sheriff's Office then met with the boy's father, who said he was working on his car's system outside when he observed a Sheriff's Office unit arrive at the house. He said he was not aware of the incident at the time, and said Acosta and the boy's grandmother were taking care of the boy, according to court documents. According to court documents, he also said the boy's grandmother told him that the boy 'had hit a vape pen.' He then admitted that the THC vape belonged to Acosta, that he was aware that she uses vapes, and that he had knowledge that Acosta keeps her vape inside her room, according to court documents. According to court documents, the Sheriff's Office, the boy's father, and the boy went to a local hospital to obtain a urine sample for the boy. After several minutes, the boy's urine returned with a positive result for THC. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
He changed laws and inspired youth. Now, this Miami Lakes grad is Harvard-bound
Former Miami Lakes Mayor Manny Cid still remembers the first time he met Maurits Acosta. He was a seventh grader with a pitch to prevent street flooding in the wake of Tropical Storm Eta. Cid told him to put it in writing. A week later, it landed in his inbox. Acosta organized support, presented before the town council, and defended the proposal at multiple hearings. It passed — modifying a 17-year-old ordinance which, according to Cid, has benefited dozens if not hundreds of households since its revision. 'Nobody questioned it until a seventh-grader said, 'We can do better,'' Cid said. 'That's civic leadership.' That same kid just graduated Hialeah-Miami Lakes High School on Tuesday and is now Boston-bound. He was accepted at Yale University, but he decided he wants to head to Harvard, a testament to the dedication of a student who made it his mission to show others the importance of being civically engaged. He's the pride of a community that just got out of his way and let him lead — even giving him an office inside his high school as a command center for his many projects and initiatives. At 18, Acosta's resumé is staggering: he served a one-year term as student advisor to the School Board of Miami-Dade County, served in multiple public service roles for the Town of Miami Lakes, and in 2022 launched a nonprofit, Virtuem Populo, dedicated to promoting civic engagement among youth across Florida. He was the 2025 Miami Herald Silver Knight recipient in Social Science. His alma mater, Miami Lakes Middle School, even named an award after him. ('He's a legend here,' said Miami Lakes Middle social studies teacher Lisa Deyarza, who helped Acosta organize the anti-flooding ordinance initiative.) Acosta worked on dozens of local initiatives and advised the mayor himself. Cid said Acosta's journey 'deserves a movie at some point,' and also offers a blueprint: Start in the classroom, expand to the school, then the community, county, and eventually the country. Born and raised in the Netherlands by his Cuban-born parents, Acosta moved to the U.S. at age 9. In the years since, he's woven himself into the civic fabric of Miami Lakes, driven by a blend of pride in his heritage and democratic idealism. A visit to Hialeah-Miami Lakes High School with Acosta quickly becomes a walk through his legacy. Ashwan Lawson, a security guard, greets him at the front desk with a laugh and a nickname: 'Marco Rubio!' The school has benefited from Acosta's ambition. Social studies teacher Rukayat Adebisi, who heads HML's legal studies program, first heard from Acosta in summer 2021 — weeks before he'd even started freshman year. Over the phone, he pitched her a vision: build the school its first-ever courtroom, a feature other schools had but HML lacked. 'He's telling me all his plans and I kept thinking, 'who is this kid telling me what we're about to do?'' Adebisi said. 'But I listened. I was like, 'Okay, we'll see where this goes.'' Once enrolled, Acosta successfully rallied a team of students to lobby the Miami Lakes Education Advisory Board and other entities, securing funding for the project along with a renovation of the school's planetarium. On Friday, four years later, the school is cutting the ribbon on its new courtroom. 'He's not a talker; he's a doer,' said Adebisi, who also serves on Virtuem Populo's board of directors. 'I think he challenges his peers to be better versions of themselves. I think that's his legacy.' Acosta's other feats at HML include starting a foodie club and launching the school's first-ever alumni association, which had its kickoff event earlier this month with over 100 in attendance, according to Acosta. 'Not to toot my own horn — but I feel like a lot of the work I've done, I've been able to bring up others with me,' Acosta said. By senior year, Acosta had three internship periods built into his schedule — time used for civic meetings, community events, and duties from his school board advisory role. Inside his office, which is nestled within the school's front office, walls are adorned with memorabilia: a proclamation from Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, framed photos with U.S. Senator Rick Scott and President Joe Biden and a Harvard tumbler beside a business cardholder. Among the keepsakes is a class assignment from a fellow Miami Lakes Middle School alum, declaring her dream: to become 'the next Maurits.' Acosta says his free time is limited — 'not a lot, but just enough.' He recently picked up golf ('not great at it,' he admits), and plans a summer trip to Nicaragua to meet the family of his girlfriend, Melany Alvarez, who's heading to Florida State University to study sociology. She preceded him as student body president and captained the dance team at HML. Are they HML's power couple? 'I think so, yeah. A little bit,' Acosta said. Acosta, who leaves for Boston in August, is unsure about where exactly his career path is headed. He's still considering whether he wants to study law or government at Harvard, but he said he's sure of one thing: 'I want to live a life dedicated to public service.' Asked about whether his name would one day appear on a Florida ballot, Acosta said 'maybe.' 'I definitely envision myself one day coming back to Miami and serving this community that's opened its doors to me and my family,' he said. Acosta's passion for public service is rooted, in part, by a sense of responsibility stemming from his family's experiences living in Cuba. Although his parents, Sergio and Anet, left Cuba decades ago, Acosta still has family in the country. His parents met in the Netherlands in the late 1990s, when his father was working as a radio journalist and producer. When his employer, Radio Netherlands, faced federal funding cuts, the family made the decision to move to U.S. The hardest part of emigrating was convincing the then 9-year-old Maurits, his father said, but the move ultimately 'went well for all of us, but especially for him.' 'I think the Phenomenon Maurits Acosta will continue to grow and expand.' Sergio Acosta said. 'I wait for it with curiosity. After all, he's only 18 years old.' He's already primed the next generation of Miami-Dade changemakers. At Virtuem Populo, the executive director-elect is Clint John Jr., a bespectacled, bowtie-wearing eighth grader got involved two years ago after cold-messaging Acosta. Within months, he was assistant deputy director. 'He saw something in me that I didn't see myself,' John said. 'To bring me into the organization — that right there was a changemaker for me.' Just like he brought John into the fold, Acosta has spent much of high school pushing his peers to take themselves seriously and take action. His message has been consistent: don't wait for permission — do the work. That spirit was on full display Tuesday night, when Acosta delivered his valedictorian speech at Hialeah-Miami Lakes High School's graduation ceremony. Speaking to an audience of hundreds at the Ocean Bank Convocation Center at FIU, told his peers that they had 'proved to the world that greatness doesn't require privilege, only purpose.' 'We are students who speak Spanish in the hallway and dream of a better tomorrow,' Acosta said. 'We are the children of field workers, teachers, mechanics, nurses, undocumented laborers and silent heroes. And somehow, despite everything, we made it.' Do you know an unsung hero in South Florida? Nominate them in the form below. If you can't see the form, click here to fill it out.
Miami Herald
5 days ago
- Politics
- Miami Herald
He changed laws and inspired youth. Now, this Miami Lakes grad is Harvard-bound
Former Miami Lakes Mayor Manny Cid still remembers the first time he met Maurits Acosta. He was a seventh grader with a pitch to prevent street flooding in the wake of Tropical Storm Eta. Cid told him to put it in writing. A week later, it landed in his inbox. Acosta organized support, presented before the town council, and defended the proposal at multiple hearings. It passed — modifying a 17-year-old ordinance which, according to Cid, has benefited dozens if not hundreds of households since its revision. 'Nobody questioned it until a seventh-grader said, 'We can do better,'' Cid said. 'That's civic leadership.' That same kid just graduated Hialeah-Miami Lakes High School on Tuesday and is now Boston-bound. He was accepted at Yale University, but he decided he wants to head to Harvard, a testimony to the dedication of a student who made it his mission to show others the importance of being civically engaged. He's the pride of a community that just got out of his way and let him lead — even giving him an office inside his high school as a command center for his many projects and initiatives. At 18, Acosta's resumé is staggering: he served a one-year term as student advisor to the School Board of Miami-Dade County, served in multiple public service roles for the Town of Miami Lakes, and in 2022 launched a nonprofit, Virtuem Populo, dedicated to promoting civic engagement among youth across Florida. His alma mater, Miami Lakes Middle School, even named an award after him. ('He's a legend here,' said Miami Lakes Middle social studies teacher Lisa Deyarza, who helped Acosta organize the anti-flooding ordinance initiative.) Acosta worked on dozens of local initiatives and advised the mayor himself. Cid said Acosta's journey 'deserves a movie at some point,' and also offers a blueprint: Start in the classroom, expand to the school, then the community, county, and eventually the country. 'Not a talker, a doer' Born and raised in the Netherlands by his Cuban-born parents, Acosta moved to the U.S. at age 9. In the years since, he's woven himself into the civic fabric of Miami Lakes, driven by a blend of pride in his heritage and democratic idealism. A visit to Hialeah-Miami Lakes High School with Acosta quickly becomes a walk through his legacy. Ashwan Lawson, a security guard, greets him at the front desk with a laugh and a nickname: 'Marco Rubio!' The school has benefited from Acosta's ambition. Social studies teacher Rukayat Adebisi, who heads HML's legal studies program, first heard from Acosta in summer 2021 — weeks before he'd even started freshman year. Over the phone, he pitched her a vision: build the school its first-ever courtroom, a feature other schools had but HML lacked. 'He's telling me all his plans and I kept thinking, 'who is this kid telling me what we're about to do?'' Adebisi said. 'But I listened. I was like, 'Okay, we'll see where this goes.'' Once enrolled, Acosta successfully rallied a team of students to lobby the Miami Lakes Education Advisory Board and other entities, securing funding for the project along with a renovation of the school's planetarium. On Friday, four years later, the school is cutting the ribbon on its new courtroom. 'He's not a talker; he's a doer,' said Adebisi, who also serves on Virtuem Populo's board of directors. 'I think he challenges his peers to be better versions of themselves. I think that's his legacy.' Acosta's other feats at HML include starting a foodie club and launching the school's first-ever alumni association, which had its kickoff event earlier this month with over 100 in attendance, according to Acosta. 'Not to toot my own horn — but I feel like a lot of the work I've done, I've been able to bring up others with me,' Acosta said. By senior year, Acosta had three internship periods built into his schedule — time used for civic meetings, community events, and duties from his school board advisory role. Inside his office, which is nestled within the school's front office, walls are adorned with memorabilia: a proclamation from Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, framed photos with U.S. Senator Rick Scott and President Joe Biden and a Harvard tumbler beside a business cardholder. Among the keepsakes is a class assignment from a fellow Miami Lakes Middle School alum, declaring her dream: to become 'the next Maurits.' Acosta says his free time is limited — 'not a lot, but just enough.' He recently picked up golf ('not great at it,' he admits), and plans a summer trip to Nicaragua to meet the family of his girlfriend, Melany Alvarez, who's heading to Florida State University to study sociology. She preceded him as student body president and captained the dance team at HML. Are they HML's power couple? 'I think so, yeah. A little bit,' Acosta said. 'Greatness doesn't require privilege, only purpose' Acosta, who leaves for Boston in August, is unsure about where exactly his career path is headed. He's still considering whether he wants to study law or government at Harvard, but he said he's sure of one thing: 'I want to live a life dedicated to public service.' Asked about whether his name would one day appear on a Florida ballot, Acosta said 'maybe.' 'I definitely envision myself one day coming back to Miami and serving this community that's opened its doors to me and my family,' he said. Acosta's passion for public service is rooted, in part, by a sense of responsibility stemming from his family's experiences living in Cuba. Although his parents, Sergio and Anet, left Cuba decades ago, Acosta still has family in the country. His parents met in the Netherlands in the late 1990s, when his father was working as a radio journalist and producer. When his employer, Radio Netherlands, faced federal funding cuts, the family made the decision to move to U.S. The hardest part of emigrating was convincing the then 9-year-old Maurits, his father said, but the move ultimately 'went well for all of us, but especially for him.' 'I think the Phenomenon Maurits Acosta will continue to grow and expand.' Sergio Acosta said. 'I wait for it with curiosity. After all, he's only 18 years old.' He's already primed the next generation of Miami-Dade changemakers. At Virtuem Populo, the executive director-elect is Clint John Jr., a bespectacled, bowtie-wearing eighth grader got involved two years ago after cold-messaging Acosta. Within months, he was assistant deputy director. 'He saw something in me that I didn't see myself,' John said. 'To bring me into the organization — that right there was a changemaker for me.' Just like he brought John into the fold, Acosta has spent much of high school pushing his peers to take themselves seriously and take action. His message has been consistent: don't wait for permission — do the work. That spirit was on full display Tuesday night, when Acosta delivered his valedictorian speech at Hialeah-Miami Lakes High School's graduation ceremony. Speaking to an audience of hundreds at the Ocean Bank Convocation Center at FIU, told his peers that they had 'proved to the world that greatness doesn't require privilege, only purpose.' 'We are students who speak Spanish in the hallway and dream of a better tomorrow,' Acosta said. 'We are the children of field workers, teachers, mechanics, nurses, undocumented laborers and silent heroes. And somehow, despite everything, we made it.' Do you know an unsung hero in South Florida? Nominate them in the form below. If you can't see the form, click here to fill it out.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
'I deserve more' — Acosta hits back after being booed in Cincinnati return
Luciano Acosta was met with boos upon his return to Cincinnati Wednesday evening with FC Dallas. The star attacker spent four seasons in Cincinnati, collecting 48 goals, 62 assists, and leading the club to a Supporters Shield triumph in that time. But after a contentious exit from the club this past offseason in which he consistently took to media in Argentina to reveal his desire to leave the club, his return to play in front of the fans who once loved him did not go as planned. "The fans need to be more grateful with me," he said after the match Wednesday eveving. "They boo me, but I don't deserve that. Lucho Acosta fires back at FC Cincinnati supporters after being boo'd throughout his return to TQL Stadium:"The fans need to be more grateful with me. They boo me, but I don't deserve that...I feel bad because I won the Supporters Shield here... the first MVP for the club, the… — Charlie Clifford (@char_cliff) May 29, 2025 "I feel bad because I won the Supporters Shield here, the first MVP for the club, the first trophy for the club. I think I deserve more than that." Acosta has taken some time to settle in Dallas, only scoring three goals so far this season. Meanwhile, Acosta's big-money replacement in Cincinnati, Brazilian playmaker Evander, has hit the ground running with 11 goal contributions in 14 games.
