Latest news with #ColumbiaCountySheriff'sOffice
Toronto Sun
2 days ago
- Toronto Sun
Florida family accused of abusing up to 9 children, caging one under bed
Published Jul 28, 2025 • 2 minute read Photo by Getty Images Authorities accused a Florida family of abusing as many as nine children in their home, including spraying vinegar in the children's faces as a form of punishment and caging a child under a bunk bed using plywood. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Husband and wife Brian and Jill Griffeth, ages 47 and 41, were arrested last week along with 21-year-old Dallin and 19-year-old Liberty Griffeth, and charged with aggravated child abuse, according to court records and a statement from the Columbia County Sheriff's Office. An investigation was launched after a mandatory reporter at the family's church raised concerns about what was happening at their home in Fort White, Florida, about 30 miles northwest of Gainesville, the sheriff's office said. One of the Griffeth's children was caught with an electronic stun gun at a church camp a few days earlier, authorities said. Concerns were also raised that the Griffeths were treating their biological children differently from their adopted children – some of whom appeared not to know their full names or birthdays. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. During a visit by investigators to the Florida home, 'it was noted that the adopted children were working on chores, while the biological children were playing or watching TV,' the sheriff's office said. The children were interviewed and 'various forms of child abuse were discovered,' the sheriff's office said, including allegations that the adopted children were beaten by Brian Griffeth with a cane and locked in their bedrooms. A court order was obtained to remove the children from the home and nine children aged 7 to 16 – five biological and four adopted – were taken into custody by the Florida Department of Children and Families on July 3. Further allegations emerged in subsequent interviews with child protection team investigators, including a child being forced to lie on the floor while a sheet of plywood was placed on top of them and pressed down 'resulting in splinters and pain,' the sheriff's office said. Others alleged they were given non-prescribed medication, told to withhold the truth about what was happening in the home and not taken to school or taught to read and write, authorities said. The children were adopted privately in Arizona, before the family moved to Florida, authorities said. The legal status of one of the children was unknown, because no Arizona adoption record was found. A tenth foster child had returned to their biological parent in Arizona, the sheriff's office said. The Griffeths were arrested on July 22 and are being held on a $500,000 bond at the Columbia County Detention Facility, according to the sheriff's office. Kimberly Kay Mears, the Florida public defender named as their attorney in court documents, did not respond to a request for comment. Wrestling Golf World Canada Canada
Yahoo
21-07-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Oregon K9 teams to aid in search for missing Texas flood victims
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Two local K9 teams are joining others from across the country to aid in the search for those lost during the catastrophic Texas floods. According to the Columbia County Sheriff's Office, their K9 teams, made up of volunteer handlers and their dogs, are being deployed at the request of Texas state officials. Cram Fire approaches megafire status, crosses 90K acres The floods originally began just before daybreak on July 4, when destructive, fast-moving waters rose 26 feet on the Guadalupe River, washing away homes and vehicles. The waters laid waste to the and an all-girls Christian summer camp, Camp Mystic, lost at least 27 campers and counselors. So far, officials estimate the floods have killed over 132 people. After search operations were temporarily paused due to threats of more flooding in the area, FEMA's Urban Search and Rescue teams fully resumed operations on Monday, Here is where extreme drought can now be found in Oregon At a news conference the same day, authorities said 101 people remain missing, including 97 in the Kerrville area. The other four were swept away in other counties. Swift water rescue teams have also been sent to Uvalde, Del Rio and Concan in anticipation of possible flooding in those communities on the Frio River, officials added. 'This is incredibly difficult work, but it's also profoundly important,' said Columbia County Sheriff Brian Pixley. 'Our hearts are with the victims, their loved ones, and the communities facing unimaginable loss. We're honored to lend our support however we can.' The Associated Press contributed to this report. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Miami Herald
13-06-2025
- Miami Herald
Letter near dead 18-year-old leads to accused killer, FL cops say. Man sentenced
The burned body of an 18-year-old woman was found in a field with a pile of items used to light her body on fire — including a letter that identified her accused killer, Florida authorities said. John Leonard Bowen, 49, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and tampering with evidence, and a judge sentenced him to life in prison following the death of Coyoete Kathren Cheyenne Turner in September 2023, the Columbia County Sheriff's Office announced June 12. Bowen's attorney declined to comment to McClatchy News on June 13. Bowen, a convicted sex offender, was in a relationship with Turner's aunt, a spokesperson for the sheriff's office told McClatchy News. Turner used to live with her aunt and Bowen, who was convicted of sex crimes against a child in 1994, according to an arrest report and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Deputies said they received a call from a citizen about a body in a peanut field on Sept. 3, 2023, and they found the remains of a young woman who had been burned, making it hard to identify her, McClatchy News previously reported. She didn't have any obvious wounds pointing to how she had died, but she had bruising on her face and burns on the upper half of her body, deputies with the Columbia County Sheriff's Office wrote in an arrest report. Deputies said they found burned garbage underneath the woman that had been used to light the fire, including a coloring book, a package of diapers and a bag of trash. But they also found a letter and an envelope, according to the sheriff's office. Investigators went to the address on the envelope and learned Bowen, then 47, was living there but hadn't updated his sex offender registration with his current address, deputies said. They told him to come to the station to update his registration soon, according to the report. As investigators worked to identify the victim, the sheriff's office posted on Facebook about the discovery of an unidentified body, prompting Turner's mother to call law enforcement, according to deputies. She told investigators she hadn't heard from her daughter in 24 hours, deputies said. Fingerprints confirmed the victim was the missing 18-year-old, according to the report. When Bowen went to the sheriff's office Sept. 7 to update his sex offender registration, he confirmed to law enforcement he had falsified his address, and he was arrested in connection with violating his registration requirements, deputies said. Investigators said they asked him about Turner as well, and he changed his story before eventually telling them he was there when she died. But he tried to implicate others, saying someone else got behind the wheel of his car and ran her over, according to the report. From his statements, investigators said they pieced together that Bowen struck Turner with his car, and while she was unconscious, he choked her and engaged in sex acts with her body. Then to conceal what happened, he tried to light her body on fire using items from his car, including the key piece of mail, deputies said. He was seen on surveillance footage at a nearby gas station shortly before 2 a.m. changing his clothes in his car before going inside the convenience store, according to investigators. The medical examiner concluded Turner's cause of death was trauma, according to the report. 'How can I trust people when it's our friends and families that done this to our family?' Turner's mother, Eleanor Houston, told WJAX in November 2023. She told WTLV her daughter loved everyone and 'wanted to have a beautiful life.' Columbia County is in north Florida on the border of Georgia.
Yahoo
07-06-2025
- Yahoo
Charges announced for teen accused of planning mass shooting at Washington mall
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The charges faced by a were released by the Columbia County Sheriff's Office on Friday. The Columbia County teen, whose name remains unreleased to the public, faces four felony charges of second-degree attempted murder, attempted first-degree assault, and two counts of unlawful use of a weapon. Oregon lawmakers hold hearing on Medicaid cuts under Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' He also faces misdemeanor charges of tampering with physical evidence, second-degree disorderly conduct, and two counts of unlawful firearm possession. On Thursday, FBI Portland announced the teen had planned to use a chlorine bomb to cause panic and then shoot patrons at the Three Rivers Mall in Kelso, Wash. before he planned to kill himself. The FBI received a tip about the plan on May 19 and identified the teen the following day. He was put under surveillance on May 20 and arrested on May 22. According to authorities, the suspect had been making 'very detailed plans' since early 2025 which included a route to the mall, a map the shooter would follow, a planned wardrobe with weapons, and annotated schematics for the improvised bomb. 'Immediate threat to public safety': Longview cracks down on unsanctioned camping 'While the threat was real, coordinated law enforcement efforts ensured that it was addressed quickly and effectively, protecting the public from harm,' said Columbia County Sheriff Brian Pixley. The suspect had reportedly pledged allegiance to multiple 'online nihilistic extremist groups and ideologies.' Law enforcement encourages families to monitor their children's online activity and to report any concerning behavior. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
FBI thwarts teen's alleged 'serious' mall attack plot involving explosives, gunfire
The FBI and law enforcement officials in Columbia County, Oregon, arrested a teenager late last month who was allegedly planning to carry out a mass shooting involving explosives at a Washington state shopping mall. In a news release Thursday, the FBI said the teen, whose name was not released, was arrested May 22 by deputies with the Columbia County Sheriff's Office. The FBI learned of "detailed and imminent" attack plans after they were reported to the agency just two days before the juvenile's arrest. After learning about the alleged planned attack, the FBI said it began working with its partners to identify the mastermind behind the threat. On May 20, the Columbia County teenager was identified as a suspect. Ohio Man Arrested After Investigators Discover Ied, Videos, Photos Of Bomb-making Materials According to the FBI, the teenager shared nihilistic violent extremist ideology, as well as the plans, in online chats. Read On The Fox News App The teenager was placed under court-authorized surveillance out of caution for the public, and, on May 22, a federal search warrant was executed, leading to the teen's arrest. The FBI said the suspect demonstrated the intention and means to carry out a plan that included details like the map of the Three Rivers Mall in Kelso, located more than two hours south of Seattle, and a route to follow. Pair Of Texas Teenagers Threatened To Place Pipe Bombs In High School And Open Fire: Police The plan allegedly involved the suspect using an improvised explosive device known as a chlorine bomb to incite panic before shooting mall patrons as they exited the movie theater and, ultimately, committing suicide at a pre-determined location at the mall, the FBI said. The investigation determined the suspect seemed intent on following through with the plan. Transgender Indiana Student Planned 'Parkland Part Two' High School Shooting: Docs "This plot was as serious as it gets," FBI Portland Special Agent in Charge Doug Olson said. "We, along with our partners, moved swiftly to interrupt this violent plan and to protect our community." While the FBI made initial contact with the teenager, the local sheriff's office made the arrest on state charges. The Columbia County District Attorney's office is prosecuting the case. The FBI said it encourages the public to report suspicious behavior to law enforcement, adding that parents are also encouraged to engage in open dialog with their children about their online article source: FBI thwarts teen's alleged 'serious' mall attack plot involving explosives, gunfire
