Local

HIGH SPRINGS ‒ The High Springs Fire Department and High Springs Police Department were called to a commercial tractor-trailer fire just before midnight on Tuesday, June 27. The truck was located in front of the Great Outdoors Restaurant at 18587 Main Street, High Springs

Upon arrival, firefighters reported fire from the rear of the trailer. The driver was able to quickly disconnect the cab of his truck from the trailer and move it safely away. Firefighters had the fire out within a few minutes of arrival. “The cause of the fire appeared to be due to the trailer brakes overheating,” said High Springs Public Information Officer Kevin Mangan.

The trailer was hauling bottled water. The intersection was blocked for about an hour by High Springs Police officers while firefighters went through the trailer, ensuring all fire was extinguished and any further hazards were mitigated in a tactic called “overhaul.”

There were no injuries reported.

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ALACHUA ‒ Jacob David Steinkoetter, 18, has been charged as an adult with armed robbery, fleeing from an officer and tampering with evidence after allegedly threatening a convenience store clerk with a gun two days before he turned 18.

On June 6, an Alachua Police Department officer responded to a report of an armed robbery at the Circle K at 16700 N.W. U.S. Highway 441 in Alachua. A store employee told him that Steinkoetter had taken two fountain drinks with a value of $2.56 from the store.

The employee said Steinkoetter acted like he was paying for the drinks at the self-checkout register, then left and got into a red Dodge Charger. A store clerk reportedly followed him into the parking lot and asked him to come inside and pay for the drinks. Steinkoetter allegedly reached under the seat of the car, produced a revolver and pointed it at the clerk, saying, “I’m not worried about it – are you?”

Steinkoetter then reportedly drove away and picked up a friend at a nearby motel. APD officers saw the car traveling southbound on U.S. Highway 441 and activated their lights and sirens, but Steinkoetter allegedly failed to stop.

During the short pursuit, Steinkoetter was reportedly seen throwing several items out of the car, including a scale, a firearm and an unknown amount of drugs that were believed to be “molly.”

Formal charges were filed in the case on June 22. Judge William Davis set bail at $165,000 when he ordered that Steinkoetter be prosecuted as an adult. Judge Thomas Jaworski set bail at the same amount on June 28. Arraignment in that case is scheduled for July 10.

Steinkoetter was previously moved to the adult jail after allegedly threatening an inmate in the juvenile detention facility with an improvised stabbing weapon on June 8, his 18th birthday. Judge Susan Miller-Jones set bail at $100,000 in that case.

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Staff report/Alachua Chronicle

ALACHUA – Sheri Lynn Hurd, 19, of Trenton, was arrested July 2 and charged with leaving the scene of a crash involving damage to property, burglary of an occupied vehicle, and two counts of battery after allegedly crashing into another car intentionally and then punching the occupants of the car.

The victims, one of whom had a previous short-term relationship with Hurd, told an Alachua Police Department officer that they were driving on U.S. Highway 441 in Alachua at about 9:45 p.m. when Hurd saw them and started driving aggressively, trying to cause a crash.

At one point, Hurd allegedly swerved in front of the victims’ car and hit the brakes, causing the victims’ car to crash into her car. The victims drove into a nearby parking lot to assess the damage to their car.

Hurd allegedly followed them, got out of her car, and began punching one victim in the face. Hurd then allegedly ran around to the other side of the victims’ car, opened the door, got into the car, and started hitting the other victim. She then allegedly pulled that victim out of the car while hitting her. Both victims reportedly sustained visible injuries.

Officers located Hurd near the intersection of U.S. Highway 441 and Northwest 147^th Drive and took her into custody.

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NEWBERRY ‒ Edwin Lee Daniels, 18, of Newberry, was arrested on Saturday, June 24, and charged with two counts of possession of a firearm or ammunition by an individual previously convicted as a juvenile of a crime that would be a felony as an adult.

At about 9:32 p.m., Alachua County Sheriff’s Deputies responded to a report of an intoxicated man inside the Dollar General store in Newberry. The caller said the man had a handgun in his waistband and an extended magazine in his pocket.

A deputy reported that Daniels, who matched the description provided by the caller, was standing outside next to the ice machine when he arrived. The deputy asked Daniels where the gun was, and Daniels reportedly said he did not have a gun but had a “clip” in his pocket.

The deputy reportedly found an extended magazine with 27 rounds of 9 mm ammunition in Daniels’ rear pocket and detained him. He then searched Daniels and did not find a gun but reportedly found another round of 9 mm ammunition in Daniels’ pocket.

When additional deputies arrived, another deputy searched the area around the ice machine and reportedly found a tan Taurus International 9 mm semi-automatic handgun lying behind the ice machine where Daniels had just been standing.

While deputies were conducting their investigation, a family member of Daniels arrived and reportedly said she had seen Daniels with the gun in her home the previous night and had told him he needed to get rid of it. She said she had seen Daniels with the gun again that day and believed he took it with him when he left the house to go to the Dollar General.

Daniels has a juvenile conviction from 2020 for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and he had a warrant for failing to appear at a hearing on a misdemeanor charge of driving without a valid license.

Bail was set at $100,000 by Judge Thomas M. Jaworski.

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GAINESVILLE – Katie Nichole Shaffer, 35, of Alachua, and Janie Elizabeth Shaffner, 38, of Lake City were arrested on June 26 and charged with scheming to defraud Walmart, which is a felony.

The two women worked in the online grocery department at the Gainesville Walmart on Northwest 23^rd Street. While assembling online orders from the shelves of the store in preparation for delivery to Walmart customers, they allegedly took items out to a vehicle for their own use.

They were reportedly caught on video at least 22 times while taking items out of the store from May 7 – June 23. In most cases, Shaffner actually pushed the cart out of the store, but both women allegedly placed the items in the cart. They reportedly stole about $1,400 in merchandise.

Post Miranda, both women reportedly admitted to the scheme and the thefts and implicated each other.

Shaffer was arrested in Alachua County in 2015 on a fugitive warrant from Tennessee for kidnapping and theft, and she also has a criminal record in Arizona. She has no local criminal history, and Judge Thomas Jaworski released her on her own recognizance.

Shaffner has no criminal history. Judge Jaworski also released her on her own recognizance.

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• Affordable Housing Advisory Committee – Two vacancies, including one member actively engaged as a not-for-profit provider of affordable housing and one member who represents employers within the County.
• Alachua County Housing Authority Board – Two vacancies, including one alternate and one tenant alternate.
• Arts Council of Alachua County – One citizen at large vacancy.
• Citizen Climate Advisory Committee – Four citizen at large vacancies.
• Citizens Disability Advisory Committee – Four citizens at large and one alternate vacancy.
• Economic Development Advisory Committee – Three vacancies, including one member actively engaged with economic development organizations, one School Board representative, and one Santa Fe College representative.
• Health Care Advisory Board – One alternate vacancy.
• Historical Commission – One citizen at large and one alternate vacancy.
• Housing Finance Authority – Three citizens at large vacancies, with one being knowledgeable in labor, finance, or commerce.
• Human Rights Board – Four vacancies, including one citizen at large, one alternate, one lending institution representative, and one residential rental manager.
• Infrastructure Surtax Oversight Board – Three vacancies, including one Alachua County resident, one alternate, and small cities (alternate) member (not Gainesville).
• Local Planning Agency – One citizen at large vacancy.
• Recreation & Open Space Advisory Committee – One citizen at large vacancy.
• Regional Transit System Advisory Board – Three vacancies, including one citizen who is one (or more) of the following: Chamber of Commerce Representative, member of the environmental community, member of the MTPO Citizen's Advisory Committee; one citizen who is one (or more) of the following: major employer in the local area, senior citizen, person with a disability; and one citizen who is one (or more) of the following: regular user of transit system, UF student, SFC student, member of a neighborhood and/or homeowners association.
• Rural Concerns Advisory Committee – Three vacancies, including one actively involved in agriculture or silviculture, one representative of the Alachua County Extension Office, and one resident residing in the Unincorporated Area Outside Urban Cluster designated in the Alachua County Comprehensive Plan.
• Tourist Development Council – One hotel owner or operator vacancy.
• Value Adjustment Board – One School Board representative vacancy.
• Victim Services and Rape Crisis Center Advisory Council – Two citizens at large vacancies.