WUFT News News and Public Media for North Central Florida from the University of Florida in Gainesville
Subscribe to The Point, arriving in your inbox Monday through Friday at 8 a.m. The stories near you • WUFT News: DeSantis, candidates slam Trump in second Republican debate. “The debate went full circle as it started and ended in the same way: candidates telling the audience they planned to defeat …
Read More »Former non-profit executives, entrusted to help domestic violence victims, accused of swindling at least $3.7 million
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement has charged two former Florida Coalition Against Domestic Violence chief executives with stealing over $3.7 million. Tiffany Carr, 54, former CEO of Florida Coalition Against Domestic Violence, and Patricia Duarte, 57, former CFO of Florida Coalition Against Domestic Violence, face felony charges with one …
Read More »UF drops to No. 6 among public universities on new US News rankings, climbs to No. 28 among all national universities
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The University of Florida fell one position to No. 6 among public universities in the new, annual national rankings published overnight Sunday by U.S. News & World Report, even as the state’s flagship school climbed one spot to No. 28 in the magazine’s rankings of top public …
Read More »Newly released video shows police with assault rifles searching inside Walmart for rogue excavator driver
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Carrying assault rifles through a local Walmart, police officers can be seen on newly released video moving past startled shoppers looking for a shirtless man who they said just crashed a stolen excavator into the building and caused $2 million in damages across the popular shopping district. …
Read More »Man accused of crashing excavator into Walmart ordered to face mental health evaluation
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – A judge has ordered a man accused of stealing an excavator and running it into several buildings to undergo a mental health evaluation before he can be released on bail. Jesse Charles Smith, 47, of Trenton, Florida, was arrested late Monday in Gainesville. Police accused him of …
Read More »The Point, Sept. 13, 2023: State wants to toss residents’ lawsuit against GRU law
Subscribe to The Point, arriving in your inbox Monday through Friday at 8 a.m. The stories near you • WUFT News: Trenton man who hijacked an excavator caused an estimated $2 million in property damage. “Police say Smith has been charged with one count of grand theft, four counts of criminal …
Read More »Trenton man who hijacked an excavator caused an estimated $2 million in property damage
Police say a Trenton man stole construction equipment and went on a destructive spree just after 10 p.m. Monday causing an estimated $2 million in property damage to four businesses, according to early estimates. Police say Jesse Charles Smith, 47, hot-wired an excavator at a construction site and drove it …
Read More »The Point, Aug. 8, 2023: Feds investigate Florida DOE, gun summit day 2, ice cream locks
Subscribe to The Point, arriving in your inbox Monday through Friday at 8 a.m. The stories near you • WUFT News: Day 2 of Gainesville’s gun violence summit closes with much work ahead. “Community leaders, gun violence prevention experts and the general public gathered to discuss possible policy options and try …
Read More »Florida set to execute inmate James Phillip Barnes in nurse’s 1988 hammer killing
A Florida man sentenced to death for the 1988 attack on a woman who was sexually assaulted and killed with a hammer, then set on fire in her own bed, is set for execution Thursday after dropping all his appeals and saying he was ready to die. James Phillip Barnes, …
Read More »UPS employee charged with grand theft
An Ocala United Parcel Service employee was arrested Wednesday and charged with grand theft after police said he attempted to sell stolen merchandise on Facebook Marketplace. The employee, 33-year-old Jose Flores Franco, was caught trying to sell around $12,000 worth of electronics and jewelry he stole from UPS packages, according …
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