Latest news with #KiaSorrento
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- Yahoo
Fugitive ex-cop arrested 4 months after skipping Tampa trial in fatal DUI
TAMPA — Joshua Roelofs, the former cop who skipped town last spring rather than face trial on charges that he caused a fatal drunk-driving crash on the Courtney Campbell Causeway, is back in jail. Roelofs, 36, was arrested Tuesday after living four months as a fugitive. He was booked a little before midnight in Hillsborough County's Orient Road Jail. Details about when and where Roelofs was located could not immediately be confirmed. The U.S. Marshals Service and the Tampa Police Department did not immediately respond to inquiries late Tuesday about the case. Jail booking records list Roelofs' arrest location as a terminal at Miami International Airport, an indication that he may have been taken into custody overseas before being brought back to the U.S. Roelofs is charged with two counts of DUI manslaughter related to the April 2022 deaths of Ricky Gongora and Kris Koroly. The pair were friends who'd worked together at the Salt Cracker Fish Camp on Clearwater Beach. 'We've just been crying happy tears,' Gongora's sister, Victoria Negrete, said late Tuesday. 'It's been a three-plus-year nightmare for our families.' Prosecutors say Roelofs was the driver of a Nissan GT-R sports car that slammed into the back of a Kia Sorrento SUV early the morning of April 12, 2022, while heading east along the Causeway. The car was determined to have been moving at more than 100 mph. Koroly and Gongora were both thrown to the pavement as the SUV overturned. The other driver, William Camacho, was severely injured and remains permanently disabled. His girlfriend, Jessica Perez Ruiz, was also injured but recovered. A medical test pegged Roelofs' blood alcohol content at .069 about five hours after the collision, according to court records. Investigators concluded he was likely well-above the .08 limit at which state law presumes impairment when the crash occurred. Receipts presented as evidence in court showed he'd paid for several vodka-based drinks in the hours before the crash at Yard of Ale and Park & Rec in downtown St. Petersburg. Roelofs worked for about five years as a Polk County sheriff's deputy. He was fired in 2015 after his superiors accused him of filing inaccurate time records to receive extra pay. In the years thereafter, he worked in several businesses, including a solar energy company. He quickly posted bonds after his 2022 arrest and got out of jail. He'd attended all court hearings as he tried to fight the charges against him. In April, after legal efforts to suppress some of the evidence in his case failed, it was anticipated that Roelofs would plead guilty and let a judge decide a sentence. But then he disappeared. Now that he's back in jail, it is unclear whether Roelofs is still poised for a guilty plea or if he will try to contest the case in a trial. Whatever the outcome, his jaunt away virtually ensures he will remain incarcerated until the case concludes.
The Age
23-06-2025
- The Age
Broncos media boss to face court over alleged drink-driving crash
The head of Brisbane Broncos' media team will face court after allegedly drink-driving and crashing a car into parked vehicles, a couple of minutes' drive from the team's headquarters in Red Hill. Melissa Mallet, 39, was allegedly driving a white Kia Sorrento on June 2 about 9.45pm when it crashed into two cars on Tooth Avenue in Paddington in Brisbane's western suburbs. It was less than two kilometres from the Broncos headquarters in Red Hill. After the crash, police allege she failed to stop, and attempted to do a U-turn, before nearby residents assisted Mallet out of the car. Officers arrived on the scene, and she allegedly returned a positive roadside breath test before she was taken to hospital for treatment. She was charged with driving whilst under the influence of liquor, and is scheduled to appear in the Brisbane Magistrates Court on July 8. Mallet is known as a former Nine News reporter in Brisbane. She was sacked over the 'Choppergate' scandal, in which the broadcaster faked live helicopter crosses to the Sunshine Coast site where police and volunteers were searching for the remains of murdered schoolboy Daniel Morcombe.
Sydney Morning Herald
23-06-2025
- Sydney Morning Herald
Broncos media boss to face court over alleged drink-driving crash
The head of Brisbane Broncos' media team will face court after allegedly drink-driving and crashing a car into parked vehicles, a couple of minutes' drive from the team's headquarters in Red Hill. Melissa Mallet, 39, was allegedly driving a white Kia Sorrento on June 2 about 9.45pm when it crashed into two cars on Tooth Avenue in Paddington in Brisbane's western suburbs. It was less than two kilometres from the Broncos headquarters in Red Hill. After the crash, police allege she failed to stop, and attempted to do a U-turn, before nearby residents assisted Mallet out of the car. Officers arrived on the scene, and she allegedly returned a positive roadside breath test before she was taken to hospital for treatment. She was charged with driving whilst under the influence of liquor, and is scheduled to appear in the Brisbane Magistrates Court on July 8. Mallet is known as a former Nine News reporter in Brisbane. She was sacked over the 'Choppergate' scandal, in which the broadcaster faked live helicopter crosses to the Sunshine Coast site where police and volunteers were searching for the remains of murdered schoolboy Daniel Morcombe.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Yahoo
Man found dead a week after being reported missing from Brooklyn Park
Authorities have confirmed the death of a man who had been reported missing from Brooklyn Park. Leonard Anderson, 62, was reported missing on April 23, having last been seen a day earlier when he left his home, and was believed to be driving a silver Kia Sorrento. A missing person alert was issued, with Brooklyn Park PD saying Anderson "has health concerns and law enforcement is concerned for his safety." In an update on Wednesday, the department canceled the alert, saying the Hennepin County Medical Examiner's Office has identified a body found on May 1 as Anderson. There are no details available at this time regarding where Anderson's body was found, nor his cause of death. "The Hennepin County Sheriff's Office is handling the death investigation. Thank you to all who assisted with the search or shared the information," the police department said. Note: The details provided in this story are based on law enforcement's latest version of events, and may be subject to change.
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- Yahoo
Former Polk deputy skips trial in fatal Courtney Campbell DUI crash
TAMPA — A former sheriff's deputy accused of driving drunk and causing a crash that killed two men on the Courtney Campbell Causeway in 2022 is now a wanted man. Joshua Kyle Roelofs failed to show up for what was scheduled to be the first day of his trial Monday morning in Tampa. He was expected to enter a guilty plea to DUI manslaughter and other charges. Instead, for almost an hour, court officials waited for the defendant. When he still did not appear after bailiffs called his name, Hillsborough Circuit Judge G. Gregory Green issued a warrant for his arrest. Roelofs, 35, had been out of jail on $19,000 bail since his arrest in May 2022. Tampa police determined he was driving an orange Nissan GTR at more than 100 mph early the morning of April 13, 2022, on the causeway, a bridge that runs across Old Tampa Bay between Clearwater and Tampa. The Nissan slammed into the back of a Kia Sorrento, which flipped over and came to rest on its side. Kris Koroly and Ricky Gongora, roommates who worked together at Salt Cracker Fish Camp in Clearwater, were both thrown from the Kia and killed. The driver, William Camacho, and another passenger, Jessica Perez, were both seriously injured. Koroly and Gongora, who were both 44 when they died, had out-of-state family members listening in to Monday's court proceedings by videoconference. They'd eagerly anticipated that three years of legal proceedings might come to an end. 'My mind is racing right now,' Gongora's sister, Victoria Negrete, said after Roelofs didn't show. 'We just want justice. And this coward, the whole time, did not take accountability. And now he didn't even show up.' 'I knew this guy was a flight risk,' said Koroly's sister, Rachel Pell. 'I am in shock. I am just in complete shock.' Roelofs' blood alcohol content was pegged at 0.69 about five hours after the collision. The limit at which state law presumes impairment is 0.08. Prosecutors presented paperwork showing that Roelofs visited two bars in St. Petersburg in the hours before the crash. Roelofs, of Mulberry, attended prior court hearings in his case. State corporation records indicate that he owns a solar energy business. From 2010 to 2015, he worked as a Polk County sheriff's deputy. He was fired after he was caught repeatedly filing inaccurate timecards to receive extra pay, sheriff's officials previously told the Tampa Bay Times. In recent weeks, his attorneys had unsuccessfully argued for a judge to suppress some of the evidence in the case. It had been anticipated that Roelofs would plead guilty and leave his sentence for a judge to determine rather than go to trial. Now, though, his case's outcome is uncertain. If he is found and arrested, he will likely be jailed without bail until his case is resolved. He will also need to obtain a new lawyer. After he failed to appear Monday, his attorneys, Deborah Barra and Glen Lansky, withdrew from representing him further. Anyone with information regarding Roelofs' whereabouts can contact the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office at 813-247-8200.
