Local

NEWBERRY ‒ Shantiel Brushea Head, 38, was arrested Friday night, Nov. 25, after allegedly stabbing a man at The Duck in Newberry.

At about 6:30 p.m., Head and the victim were at The Duck, 455 N.W. 252^nd Street, when Head reportedly became angry at a third person and started arguing with her.

Head allegedly “shoulder-checked” that woman at one point by intentionally bumping into her because the woman was talking to Head’s boyfriend. Head reportedly continued to behave aggressively toward the woman until she allegedly tried to attack her.

At that point, the boyfriend tried to get between Head and the woman and Head allegedly stabbed the victim in the back. The victim was trauma-alerted to UF Health Shands. Head reportedly fled the area after the attack.

Head reportedly returned a short time later and told Alachua County Sheriff’s Deputies that the victim had been choking her and that she stabbed him in self-defense. However, the deputies reported that her version of events was not consistent with the statements of several witnesses who had seen the altercation.

Head has been charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon without intent to kill. She has one felony conviction from 2012 for dealing in stolen property. This is a second-degree felony.

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ALACHUA COUNTY – The City of High Springs will be making improvements to a local park thanks to funding from the Duke Energy Foundation.

The Foundation recently announced $160,000 in grants to support eight local community projects in Alachua County.

A first for Duke Energy Florida, the company worked alongside the Greater Gainesville Chamber of Commerce Foundation to identify local projects that have meaningful impacts in North-Central Florida communities.

The targeted $20,000 grants support initiatives ranging from park revitalization to signage projects, as well as equipment and plan upgrades.

In High Springs, the grant will assist the Parks and Recreation, Education and Culture Department (Parks & REC) in upgrading a popular basketball court at Walter Howard Park.

“With this grant, we plan to resurface the outdoor basketball court and upgrade the baskets at Walter Howard Park, High Springs' crown jewel pocket park,” said Damon J. Messina, Parks & R.E.C. director. “This park has been a favorite among children in our community for several years. These upgrades will ensure it will be available for many years to come.”

To help guide the economic growth and development of the community, the City of Waldo received a grant to update and enhance the city’s Comprehensive and Economic Development Plan.

“The City of Waldo’s Comprehensive and Economic Development Plan is outdated and is actually an impediment for new growth,” said City of Waldo Mayor Louie Davis. “The cost of these updates is beyond our budget at this time and this grant has made it possible for the updates to happen.”

“With the growth expected in Florida’s future, Waldo needs to be ready with a strong plan to handle the growth and development in our city,” said Davis. “Thank you, Duke Energy, for awarding grants like these for the small towns. Your dollars make a difference.”

In addition to Waldo and High Springs, revitalization grants were also awarded to additional cities and towns.

In the city of Alachua, funds will support the City’s efforts to provide educational exhibits and signage at Mill Creek Preserve to inform residents and visitors about the Mill Creek Sink Water Quality Improvement Project.

Funds will be used to add a kitchen at the Holly Hills Community Center in Archer, while in Hawthorne, funds will support the City’s Hawthorne Historical Park with educational signage, benches and grills, among other items.

The Town of LaCrosse fire department will use the funds to replace equipment used by the town's fire department and the Town of Micanopy will use the funds to support the town’s Micanopy Entry Sign Project.

In Newberry, funds will support the City’s business incubator feasibility study at Newberry AgTech Innovation Park.

The Duke Energy Foundation grants are designed to aid revitalization and local economic development efforts and to help strengthen and uplift communities.

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NEWBERRY ‒ Ernesto Angel Morales Alejo, 19, was arrested Friday night, Nov. 25, and charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon after allegedly intentionally hitting a man with his car.

At about 8 p.m. Friday night, Alachua County Sheriff’s Deputies responded to a call from an address in Newberry about an armed disturbance. The deputies interviewed the victim and witnesses and determined that following a brief physical fight, Morales Alejo had gotten into his car and started revving the engine in the front yard of the victim’s home. He then allegedly began driving across the yard, leaving tire tracks several inches deep that went across the yard and all the way to the front door.

The victim, who was trauma-alerted to UF Health Shands, reportedly told deputies that Morales Alejo intentionally drove toward him and hit him with the front of his car. Morales Alejo’s vehicle reportedly had a broken headlight on one side and a large dent in the fender. A witness also reportedly told a deputy that Morales Alejo had intentionally hit the victim with his car at high speed.

Another witness told a deputy that he had seen Morales Alejo “driving crazy” in the front yard and then heard yelling and screaming as if someone were in pain.

Morales Alejo, who gave a Gainesville address, was later arrested at Hitchcock’s Grocery in Newberry and has been charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon. He has no local criminal history and has been charged with a second-degree felony.

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GAINESVILLE ‒ The Alachua County Legislative Delegation will be holding its annual public hearing on Tuesday, Jan. 10, at 1:30 p.m.  The meeting will be held in the Lyceum Concert Hall on the campus of Santa Fe State College at 3000 N.W. 83^rd Street in Gainesville.

The Legislative Delegation includes State Senator Jennifer Bradley (R-Fleming Island), State Senator Keith Perry (R-Gainesville), State Representative Chuck Brannan III (R- Macclenny), State Representative Chuck Clemons (R-Newberry) and State Representative Yvonne Hinson (D-Gainesville). 

The Delegation Hearing is intended to afford local residents and officials an opportunity to request legislation or state funding, as well as to express opinions on any other matter of state concern, in advance of the 2023 Regular Legislative Session, slated to begin in Tallahassee on March 7.  This hearing is open to the public.

For additional information please contact the office of Speaker pro tempore Chuck Clemons, State Representative, District 22, at 352-313-6542. 

Members of the public wishing to be placed on the printed agenda can do so by emailing their request, along with any backup information, to HD022@myfloridahouse.gov.

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NEWBERRY ‒ A 26-year-old Newberry man was killed on Sunday, Nov. 20, at approximately 9:32 p.m. The incident involved a red passenger car driven by a 19-year-old Gainesville man. At just east of the intersection of State Road 26 and Southwest 260^th Street the passenger car hit the pedestrian who was pronounced deceased on the scene by emergency services.

According to the Florida Highway Patrol Official Report, no injuries were sustained by the driver or his 15-year-old passenger in the red car. The names of the persons involved in this crash were not released.

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ALACHUA ‒ Masud D’Andre Headen, 29, was pulled over for speeding on Thursday, Dec. 1, in Alachua and found to have an outstanding warrant for stealing a Land Rover and altering the vehicle identification number (VIN). The arrest report also points to evidence that Headen was involved in multiple financial scams.

A Florida Highway Patrol Trooper pulled Headen over on U.S. Highway 441 in Alachua for traveling 63 mph in a 45-mph zone. The trooper learned that Headen’s driver’s license was suspended and that he has three prior convictions for driving with a suspended license. The trooper also learned that Headen was wanted on a felony warrant and arrested him.

In March 2022, a Gainesville Police Department officer responded to a child abuse investigation, and a witness, who had been in a relationship with Headen for three years, said there was a stolen Land Rover in her garage and she “want[ed] it gone.”

She reportedly told the officer that Headen takes stolen vehicles and switches out the VIN and has a number of tags registered under different names. She reportedly said she had “a bunch” of different vehicles registered under her name because of this scheme. She also reportedly said that Headen doesn’t get oil changes on his cars because there are different VINs on the vehicle. If someone looks up one of the VINs, it will show stolen parts.

The officer reportedly found two different VINs on the Land Rover; one had no title registered and one did not come back to any vehicle or title but matched a vehicle registration under the name of the witness.

During the investigation, Headen returned to the residence and was found to have the car keys on him. He was arrested in connection with the child abuse investigation, but those charges were later dropped.

Post Miranda, Headen reportedly said the Land Rover belonged to his sister and that she let him borrow it. He denied switching out any of the VINs.

The Land Rover was towed and later searched. An officer learned that neither of the VINs had ever been created; he was unable to find a physical VIN (besides the two fraudulent VINs already found) in the car but was able to turn on the car and retrieve the VIN from the car’s computer. That VIN showed that the car had been reported stolen from a car rental agency in Miami. The car had originally been black but had an “unprofessional” wrap that changed the color to gunmetal gray.

The officer spoke to an investigator at the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (DHSMV) who said that the two fraudulent VINs had been applied for and added to the registrations for newly-purchased vehicles by a dealership in Opa-locka, Florida. The dealership has since been closed by DHSMV.

Headen reportedly gave consent to search his phones. The officer reportedly found communications in which Headen said he had bought the Land Rover for $20,000 and had paid $5,000 to get it registered; he also discussed how he had to change the color of the car to match the purchased registration.

The officer also found communications on the phones “involving a myriad of frauds.” He obtained a new search warrant and found information about Headen purchasing personal banking information for other people and selling it to others. There were reportedly communications about selling cloned credit cards, fake checks with real account information and fake money orders.

The officer reportedly found “dozens” of communications in which Headen tells others how to access the stolen bank account information and engage in a scam called “card cracking,” along with “conversations about how easy it is to make money doing these scams.”

Headen is currently charged with driving without a valid license, grand theft of a motor vehicle and possessing a vehicle with altered VINs. The warrant recommends a bond of $50,000.

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