Latest news with #CharlotteCountySheriff'sOffice
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
‘Can't understand it': Mom attacks 12-year-old girl with knife, leaving her under bush, sheriff says
**Related Video Above: What happens when you call 911? PUNTA GORDA, Fla. (WJW) — Detectives report a Florida woman confessed to stabbing her 12-year-old daughter in the face and neck, leaving her barely alive under some shrubs on Memorial Day. According to a news release from the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office, 35-year-old Gwendolyn Girard, 35, was arrested on aggravated battery and child abuse charges following her alleged confession. Local man accused of brutally stabbing puppy pleads not guilty 'In my 33-year career, there are only a handful of times that I have been left speechless. This is one of those times. To attack a child with a knife… I can't understand it,' Sheriff Bill Prummell said in a statement. Multiple local outlets, including WINK, confirmed Girard was the girl's mother and that the girl played dead in order to survive the attack that took place at Cecil Webb Wildlife Management Area, according to court documents. Deputies said they were called to the recreational area by passersby who had found the girl with stab wounds and weak. They spoke to the girl who identified the attacker as Girard and said she drove off in a gold van. Girard and her vehicle were found in Lee County, where she was taken in for questioning and eventually arrested, the sheriff's office said. 'Reunited and it feels so good': Todd Chrisley's daughter picks him up from prison after Trump pardon The girl is reportedly in stable condition following treatment at a hospital. Girard appeared in court for the first time Thursday. Her bond was set at $750,000, according to the sheriff's office. 'It is only by God's grace that she is still with us today, and I pray for her as she heals from this horrific incident,' Prummell said of the girl. 'Unfortunately, the mental trauma inflicted on her may never heal.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Fla. mom accused of attacking daughter with knife, ‘discarding' her under brush in nature preserve
Investigators in Southwest Florida are investigating a horrifying attack against a 12-year-old girl. Deputies said she was found alone in a nature preserve after her mother attacked her. Investigators in Charlotte County said Gwendolyn Girard drove her daughter to the Cecil Webb Wildlife Management Area and stabbed her multiple times. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< Deputies said the girl was found bleeding and barely able to speak. 'The victim had been kind of, I hate to use the word, discarded. But that's kind of the best way to describe what it was. After the attack, she was left bloodied and under a pile of brush,' said Chris Hall with the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office. Officials said the girl was taken to a hospital where she continues to recover from her injuries. Her mother is charged with aggravated battery and aggravated child abuse. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
Miami Herald
27-05-2025
- Miami Herald
Woman stabs 12-year-old at nature preserve, leaves her under brush, FL cops say
A woman attacked a 12-year-old girl with a knife at a Florida nature preserve and tried to conceal her under some brush before fleeing, authorities said. Law enforcement obtained warrants for the arrest of 35-year-old Gwendolyn Girard on charges of aggravated battery and aggravated child abuse in the May 26 incident, the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office said. Girard and the girl knew each other, but deputies could not provide further detail on their relationship due to the ongoing investigation. The afternoon of Memorial Day, passersby at the Cecil M. Webb Wildlife Management Area found a girl with cuts on her face and neck, deputies said in a news release. First responders said when they arrived, they found her 'weak and in need of immediate medical attention.' The 12-year-old told investigators that Girard stabbed her and tried to 'hide her body' in the brush, although she was still alive, then Girard fled in a van, according to deputies. The Lee County Sheriff's Office found Girard and the van in North Fort Myers, and during questioning, Girard told deputies what happened and where the knife was, according to investigators. 'To attack a child with a knife … I can't understand it,' Charlotte County Sheriff Bill Prummel said. 'It is only by God's grace that she is still with us today, and I pray for her as she heals from this horrific incident. Unfortunately, the mental trauma inflicted on her may never heal.' Girard was booked in Lee County jail. The wildlife management area is in southwest Florida, about a 15-mile drive northwest from Fort Myers.
Miami Herald
09-05-2025
- Miami Herald
Man leaves dog in hot car, then hits bystander trying to help, Florida cops say
A dispute over a dog left inside a hot car ended with a witness being hit by the car in a parking lot, according to Florida deputies. The dog's owner, 68-year-old Anthony Panagoplos, was arrested and charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon following the incident outside a Bealls store in Englewood, the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office wrote in a probable cause affidavit obtained by McClatchy News. He was arrested and taken to jail but posted bail, online records show. Deputies responded just after 6 p.m. on May 2 and were met by two witnesses who said they spotted a dog in a blue Toyota that 'appeared to be in distress,' according to the report. The women told deputies that they, with help from other bystanders, gave the dog water through a cracked window. 'They were like trying to put it in the cap of the gallon jug, and it just like wasn't enough,' Sarah Nolin, one of the witnesses, told WBBH. 'So they just kind of dumped it in.' That's when Panagoplos exited the store and yelled at the group to 'mind their own business,' according to the affidavit. He moved his car to another area of the parking lot, this time rolling his windows all the way up before going back into Bealls, the witnesses told deputies. One of the other bystanders, a man, followed Panagoplos into the store to confront him, per the affidavit. A verbal dispute ensued, during which Panagoplos allegedly shoved a female worker who tried to intervene, witnesses told deputies. Their dispute spilled back into the parking lot where the two men continued arguing as they stood behind Panagoplos' car, according to the affidavit. Panagoplos got in his vehicle and put it in reverse, despite the witness alerting him that he was still behind it. 'Anthony was aware of this but he still put the vehicle in reverse and struck the victim with the rear bumper of the vehicle,' knocking him to the ground, witnesses told deputies. They called 911 but Panagoplos sped off before authorities arrived. The victim had 'visible redness' on his leg from the impact but wasn't seriously hurt, deputies said. Authorities did not say if Panagoplos will face additional charges for locking his dog in the car. Englewood is about a 60-mile drive northwest from downtown Fort Myers.
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Yahoo
Man known to throw canned food around neighborhood arrested after corn goes through window: affidavit
PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. (WFLA) — A man known to throw cans of food and other items around a Florida neighborhood, and at others, was arrested after a neighbor said he threw canned corn through her window, an arrest affidavit said. On April 25, a Port Charlotte woman called the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office to report vandalism at her neighbor's home. She said she was outside when she heard the sound of glass breaking. Powerball winner visiting Florida kicks Pinellas deputy in face days after hitting jackpot: affidavit The woman turned toward the noise to find one of her neighbors, 38-year-old Erlz Ernest Saintvil, running from another neighbor's front yard and back toward his home. According to the affidavit, the left front window was found broken at the top, as if something had been thrown through the glass. The witness got a key from another neighbor in the neighborhood, who watches the owner's house when she is away, and went into the home to see what had happened. The women found broken glass and a Del Monte can of corn inside. The witness claimed Saintvil is known in the area for 'throwing cans of food around that he had gotten from food banks and causing issues.' Neighbors told NBC affiliate WBBH the suspect has also thrown a bottle of urine, glass plates, chunks of metal and raw meat at their homes. Deputies contacted the victim, who said she had just replaced the window and wished to press charges against Saintvil, as he is always throwing things in the neighborhood and at people. 'She just came down and put $500 into repairing it,' a neighbor told the news outlet. 'I called the lady, who lives there, because she lives in Canada, to explain that he had attacked her house again.' 'It's not safe': 3 coyote attacks reported in 2 days in Florida beach town 'Someday, he's going to hurt somebody,' another longtime resident told WBBH. When Saintvil was approached at his home, he opened the front door, said 'I plead the fifth' twice, shut the door, and refused to come outside, the report said. The following day, authorities returned to the scene and found Saintvil outside. He pleaded the fifth again, before telling deputies, 'You can't take me.' Saintvil was arrested on April 26 on charges of shooting into or throwing deadly missiles into dwellings and criminal mischief between $200 and $1000 in damage. He was taken to the Charlotte County Jail. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
