Car Show for Heroes at Wing House

Car Show for Heroes at Wing House in Altamonte Springs Florida was a great way spend a Saturday afternoon.

This was for VFW Post 4287 and Semper Fidelis America, both very active in our area.

As always, the Wing House Girls brought a lot of smiling faces.

Marine from Florida Among Missing in Nepal

Marine from Altamonte Springs among those missing in Nepal chopper
Sgt. Mark Johnson IV's chopper went missing Tuesday
WESH2 News
By Chris Hush
Published 10:59 PM EDT May 13, 2015

"We were terrified the entire eight months he was in Afghanistan, but when he said he had to go to Nepal to deliver food, we were just proud of him,” Ward Johnson said.

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. —Army helicopters have joined the search for the missing U.S. Marine Corps helicopter that vanished Tuesday in Nepal.

The chopper was delivering disaster aid following the earthquake that killed more than 8,000 people in the country.

U.S. Marine Sgt. Mark Johnson IV, an Altamonte Springs native and father of two, is believed to have been on board that helicopter.

"We said, ‘Love you, be safe,’ and (those) were the last words we said to him,” said Shirley Johnson, Mark Johnson’s mother.

Shirley Johnson and her husband, Ward Johnson III, said they wait by their phones and the door for any indication that their son is OK.
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Teen arrested, accused of threatening Columbine-style attack on school

Teen arrested, accused of threatening Columbine-style attack on school

By John W. Davis and Dave D'Marko, Reporter
Last Updated: Wednesday, November 23, 2011

An 18-year-old in Altamonte Springs was caught planning to carry out what police call a "Columbine-type" attack at Lake Brantley High School.

Emmanuel Costas is now facing charges of attempted felony murder.

He made his first appearance before a judge Wednesday.

Costas’ father was also arraigned for a parole violation and possession of cocaine, which is not connected with this case.

On Costas’ Facebook page, he said he’s sorry.

However, inside the courtroom, the teen seemed distracted, almost grinning with a smirk on his face.

It all started on the social media website where Costas posted an eerie message Nov. 16:

“everybody prepare urselfz 4/17 iz approaching let tha carnage begin”
Word then started spreading around the school.

“The student reported it to his mother and she immediately contacted the Altamonte Springs Police Department,” said Interim Altamonte Springs Police Chief Michael Deal.
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Motorist accused of raping stranded woman he stopped to "help"

Motorist accused of raping stranded woman

Rene Stutzman

Sentinel Staff Writer

9:54 p.m. EDT, October 29, 2009


ALTAMONTE SPRINGS - (An earlier version of this story incorrectly reported the victim was a teenager. She is 26.)

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS
Police today arrested a 33-year-old man, accused of stopping to help a young woman who was stranded on Interstate 4 then driving to a storage facility and raping her.

Winel Albert Castro Molina of Lake Mary was booked into the Seminole County jail this morning. He's accused of rape and is being held on $25,000 bail.

Altamonte Springs Officer Todd Smith interrupted the rape in progress shortly after 3 a.m, said Special Officer Tim Hyer, an agency spokesman.

Smith was on a routine patrol when he found Castro Molina and the 26-year-old woman in the back seat of her car at a rental storage facility on Douglas Avenue.
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Motorist accused of raping stranded woman

Police: 13 year old boy carjacked woman, grandchildren at gunpoint

Police: Boy carjacked woman, grandchildren at gunpoint

Susan Jacobson

Sentinel Staff Writer

10:27 PM EDT, July 31, 2009


A 13-year-old boy carjacked a woman and her three grandchildren today in broad daylight, authorities said.

The boy pointed a handgun at the woman as she walked to her car in the Circuit City plaza at 1140 E. Altamonte Drive about 3:20 p.m., Altamonte police Officer Timothy Hyer said.

"Give me your keys," he said, according to investigators.

The woman complied, and the boy fumbled for a couple of minutes before he got the car started and took off, Hyer said.
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Boy carjacked woman, grandchildren at gunpoint

Cranes Roost Red Hot and Boom leaves 27 needing medical care

It is great to go to the fireworks displays across the country, but when a night of fun turns into something else, it can be a shock. One woman was hurt when she was burnt. Others ended up being dehydrated and suffering from the heat. Not much fun. Some of them ended up in the hospital. For tonight use care. If you are in a part of the country where it's hot, make sure you have plenty of water or sports drinks. Stay away from alcohol. It's hard to not drink at a barbeque or party, but think of what it will cost you in the end when you were planning on enjoying fireworks but ended up miserable because you were dehydrated, or worse, end up in the hospital.

We're heading out to a party at a lake. Sunscreen is a must and for me, so is a hat. As for alcohol, drinking too much is not that hard for me. A few glasses of wine or a margarita and I'm toast. I need a nap right after so I tend to not drink in public unless I know I'll be home soon and someone else is doing the driving. Planning ahead and taking everything into consideration will give you a much better night than having to visit a hospital emergency room.

Woman injured when Red, Hot and Boom fireworks land in crowd

Rebecca Beitsch and Gary Taylor

Sentinel Staff Writers

11:48 PM EDT, July 3, 2009


ALTAMONTE SPRINGS - There were 27 reports of people suffering from injuries, heat exhaustion or dehydration during Friday night's Red, Hot & Boom fireworks show at Crane's Roost in Altamonte Springs.

Seven of them were transported to hospitals, including a woman suffering from fireworks burns who was taken to Florida Hospital Altamonte. The woman suffered burns as a result of fireworks from the show landed in the crowd, Seminole County fire Lt. David Williams said.

While there were reports of other people suffering minor fireworks burns, it was not known if those injuries were caused by the show's fireworks or personal fireworks.

An estimated 165,000 people attended the event.

Mom says enlisting in army started son's downfall

Troop Shortage Fallout: The Disastrous Consequences of Recruiting Unfit Soldiers
Elaine Silvestrini
The Tampa Tribune (Florida)

Jul 23, 2008
Mom says enlisting in army started son's downfall

July 20, 2008, Tampa, FL - When the United States was attacked on Sept. 11, 2001, 14-year-old Phillip Michael Pearson told his mother he wanted to join the military as soon as he graduated from Alonso High School.

The wrestling team captain graduated early at age 17, but his mother wouldn't sign the papers. When he turned 18 in 2004, he immediately enlisted, said his mother, Tonya Shelton.

His entry into the Army, where he trained for Special Forces, was the beginning of a downward spiral, Shelton said. That ended Tuesday when his body was found in a courtyard between four air conditioning units at the Altamonte Apartments on North Himes Avenue.

"There was not one person that knew him before he went in the Army that would say anything negative," Shelton said. "Before he went in the Army, he had no problems whatsoever."

After initial training in Oklahoma, he was sent to Fort Benning, Ga., Shelton said. He told his mother the place had a party atmosphere like a college dorm.
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http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/ArticleID/10734