Law Enforcement

A spate of inquiries to law enforcement has prompted one local agency to reach out to the community it protects to calm unwarranted concerns.A spokesman for the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office issued an alert Wednesday morning about the topic."I am receiving a lot of inquiries about possible threats to our schools this morning. I thought it would be best to reach out to all of you at once to quell any rumors," Chris Hall, public relations officer at the Sheriff's Office, said.

A Collier County man missing for more than a week has been confirmed dead, the Collier County Sheriff's Office said Sunday.Posting on the agency's Facebook site, the Sheriff's Office said that a body tentatively identified as that of Eduardo Ramirez was located by members of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission on Saturday a short distance south of the 97 Mile Marker in the Picayune Strand.

Seven people were hospitalized Sunday evening after a building containing a Naples pizzeria partially collapsed.Shortly before 7 p.m., Naples Police, Naples Fire-Rescue and Collier County EMS, responded to the Italian pizzeria and restaurant’s 878 5th Avenue South building.

The University Police Department is conducting an active assailant training exercise from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, May 25, in Biscayne Hall, part of FGCU’s South Village residential area. A simulator that portrays the sound of gunshots may be heard throughout the training.

A Florida appeals court has effectively opened a loophole in the state's long-standing law against recording telephone conversations without the permission of both sides of the call, ruling that law enforcement officers performing their official duties can be secretly recorded because they have no expectation of privacy.The court's decision — involving a citizen who accused the Citrus County Sheriff's Office of misconduct — is the latest to provide new mechanisms for civilian oversight of law enforcement, even as others were curtailed in recent days by Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Republican-led Legislature.

A lawsuit filed by a Fort Myers man over the removal of weapons and ammunition, much of it antique, from his home by the Lee County Sheriff's Office in March 2020 claims there were violations of the state constitution as well as damage done to materials taken.The suit was filed by W. Alecs Dean March 29 in Lee County Court and seeks damages up to $100,000.

Craig Kowalski has accepted the position of Chief of Police for Florida Gulf Coast University and will begin work officially on April 15.The acceptance was announced Thursday by David Vazquez, Vice President of Administrative Service and Finance.

You've probably seen them parked in various spots around your area ... unmanned police units meant to be a word to the wise against speeding or other traffic infractions.Usual reactions, unless they've been previously seen in the same spot, are to initially hit the brakes ... and then motor on by when it's clear it's a "decoy."In this case, someone made a "comment" — on the car.

Several Cape Coral schools were placed on lockdown Wednesday morning for several hours.Cape Coral High School, Heritage Charter Academy, Skyline Elementary, Challenger Middle School and Patriot Elementary were placed on lockdown as a precaution after a possible threat at the high school on Santa Barbara Boulevard South.All lockdowns were lifted shortly before 10:30 a.m.

Open forums were scheduled for next week for the top three candidates for chief of the University Police Department at FGCU. One of the candidates has withdrawn their name.James Slapp, the UPD's current chief, will be retiring in May after a 45-year career in law enforcement.