Crime

The 100 block of Howard Avenue in greater New Smyrna Beach was the scene of an armed home invasion Saturday night.

NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- Volusia County Sheriff's deputies were investigating an apparent drug-related armed home invasion Saturday night in the 100 block of Howard Avenue, just outside the city limits.

After barging into the residence, one of two occupants inside suffered a slight head injury in a scuffle before the five young intruders, described only as black and between the ages of 18 to 21, ran off.

At least one of the intruders had a handgun, though no shots were fired. The injured resident, who may have known his attackers, was treated on scene by paramedics shortly after the 9 p.m. incident, said Sheriff's Sgt. Corey Piser from the dispatch center early this morning. 

Freddie Lee Giddemns Jr. of Palm Coast will  spend the next 25 years in prison for a brutal prescription drug robbery of an Ormond Beach pharmacy last September. The minimum-mandatory sentence handed down would keep him behind bars until the age of 57.

DAYTONA BEACH -- A 32-year-old Palm Coast man convicted at trial in May of sticking a gun in the face of a phamacy tech in Ormond Beach for painkillers and other prescription drugs was sentenced Tuesday to 30 years in prison that requires him to serve a mandatory minimum of 25 years behind bars.

The CVS pharmacy on Howland Boulevard in Deltona was the target early Sunday of a cross-dressing robber with a green wig, black lipstick and a handbag.

DELTONA -- A cross-dressing thief claiming to have a bomb failed early this morning morning in an attempt to rob a Deltona drug store of its prescription pills after the pharmacist refused to give him what he craved.

The would-be-robber ran from the CVS pharmacy, 2187 Howland Blvd., empty-handed just before 6 a.m. and managed to get away just prior to the arrival of responding Volusia County Sheriff's deputies.

"Witnesses said the suspect -- they weren't sure if it was a man or a woman -- claimed that their children were being held hostage," Sheriff's spokesman Gary Davidson said. "The suspect also claimed to have a bomb and threatened to blow up the store if the prescription drugs weren't handed over."

Headline Surfer video produced by Sera Frederick / Warning: Video may no be suitable for all age groups. Surveillance video shows a man being shot outside the Papis Bottle Club, 1376 N. Nova Road, just outside the Holly Hill city limits early Friday morning.

HOLLY HILL -- Volusia County Sheriff's deputies are on the lookout this weekend for a gunman who opened fire early Friday on a man outside a bottle club -- bullets striking his leg and hand early Friday.

The arrow points to the Papa Johns restaurant outside the DeLand city limits where an employee was robbed by a lone gunman.

DELAND -- The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the armed robbery of an employee of a North Woodland Boulevard pizzeria who had the night deposit cash on him when a gun was shoved in his face as he was getting into his vehicle.

Deputies arrived within 3 minutes of the 1:52 a.m. Saturday 9-1-1 call made by the victim outside the Papa Johns.

"Once there, deputies learned that an employee was getting into his car when a stranger emerged from an adjacent parking lot, thrust a gun through the passenger side window of the victim’s car, pointed the weapon at the victim and demanded his money," Sheriff's spokesman Gary Davidson said. "The victim immediately complied and handed over a bag containing the cash for the night deposit."

Resignation shows on the face of 45-year-old Fredrick Bardell of New Smyrna Beach, in his June 20 booking mug before beginning a lengthy prison sentence for downloading and hoarding more than 20,000 photos and movies of small children engaged in lewd sex acts. 

NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- Fredrick Bardell, who served in the U.S. Coast Guard, is now serving time in prison for downloading and hoarding 16,500 photos and more than 400 movies involving pre-adolescent children, the US Attorney's Office said in a press release Wednesday.

The 45-year-old New Smyrna Beach man had been collecting the kiddie porn for two decades and even shared the content with others online.

NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- Four men, on of whom was armed with a handgun, forced their way into a home on Downing Street overnight and robbed two young men, before fleeing, police said.

Here is a synopsis of what happened as described by New Smyrna Beach Police Sgt. Christopher Roos in the 1:30 home invasion at 804 Downing St.: "The initial responding officers were able to ascertain from the victims, Stephen Michael Jackson, 20, and Aramis Arkeem Ponder, 22, that at least four unknown males, one of whom was armed with a handgun, forced entry into the home and demanded money and property belonging to the victims. The suspects later fled the scene with the victims’ property. The scene was secured and turned over to the New Smyrna Beach Investigative Division, who is investigating the incident. The identity of the suspects is still unknown."

Anthony Michael Shaw, 35, known to local police as shown in this March booking mug, was found dead over the weekend in a homeless camp in a wooded area of Daytona Beach. His name was released to the media on Monday. How or why he died has not been released.

DAYTONA BEACH -- The body of a homeless man found in a makeshift camp in the woods of Brentwood rive over the weekend has been identified as that of 35-year-old Anthony Michael Shaw. How the man was killed or when has not ye been released by police.

James Seagrave and his apparent girlfriend, Kelly Nemoto were found dead inside a mobile home Thursday afternoon after a lengthy standoff with a Hillsborough SWAT team. Seagrave was the prime suspect in the March 31 fatal shooting of Tom Walsh, the manager of the Mainstreet Grill restaurant during a botched robbery.

DELAND -- The man believed responsible for murdering the manager of the Mainstreet Grill on New York Avenue in March was found dead in a mobile home today in Hillsborough County after a standoff with a SWAT team, authorities said.

James Seagraves, a convicted felon, shot and killed the manager, Tom Walsh, during a bothed robbery on March 31. The 29-year-old suspect had just been released from prison March 2, after serving a two-year term for an armed robbery in Marion County.

The standoff ended just after 6 p.m. in Gibsonton, a rural unincorporated community in Hillsborough County. The SWAT team entered the mobile home where Seagraves had barricaded himself after tear gas cleared and found his body and that of a woman presumed to be his girlfriend, Kayla Nemoto, Hillsborough County Sheriff's Detective Larry McKinnon said. How they died has not yet been released.