‘Baby Mama Drama’ At Cobb Theater

Brittany Lynch
Brittany Lynch

By Matt Wiley,

A woman has been charged with domestic battery after allegedly attacking her ex-boyfriend in the parking lot of a Wesley Chapel movie theater.

The Pasco County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) reports that at around 10:30 p.m. on November 22, Mykhal Harris, 23, was walking to his car with a female friend named Shenee Peterkin after seeing a movie at the Cobb Grove 16, located in The Grove shopping plaza off Wesley Grove Blvd.

“Out of nowhere,” as Peterkin described the incident to deputies, Harris’ live-in ex-girlfriend and mother of his child, Brittany Michele Lynch, 24, ran up to and began striking Harris in the face. The arrest report states that Lynch also attempted to strike Peterkin. At one point during the struggle, Lynch reportedly pulled Harris to the ground by his dreadlocks.

Harris and Peterkin were able to get into Harris’ 2010 Dodge Charger, but the PCSO report states that Lynch began to kick the headlights of the vehicle, keyed the hood and driver’s side door and attempted to break the driver’s side window with her left fist. Harris dialed 9-1-1 and made an on-duty deputy at the movie theater aware of the incident.

PCSO deputies found Lynch to be belligerent and emotional when they came into contact with her. The arrest report states that she continued to yell obscenities at Harris and told deputies that she couldn’t understand what made Harris think that he could be with other women. She also told deputies that an abrasion on her forehead was caused by Harris throwing her to the ground.

Lynch was arrested for domestic battery and criminal mischief, but the latter charge was referred to the State Attorney’s office. She was released from the Pasco County Detention Center on a $250 bond.

Men Steal $26K In Equipment From Employer

By Matt Wiley,

Months of conspiring to steal surveying equipment from their employer has landed two Pasco County men in jail.

According to the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO), Bradley Richard Ragsdill, 23, of Lutz, and Bradley Kinsman Perez, 23, of Dade City, were arrested at 4 p.m. on November 22 on charges of scheming to defraud.

Bradley Ragsdill
Bradley Ragsdill
Bradley Perez
Bradley Perez

The arrest reports state that between May 1 and November 25 of this year, Ragsdill and Perez conspired to steal surveying equipment from their employer, International Surveying Equipment, Inc., located off Cypress Ridge Blvd. in Wesley Chapel. The two duplicated a key to the business in order to gain unauthorized access to it and deleted inventory records of the products that they were planning to steal, according to the arrest reports.

In total, Ragsdill and Perez stole more than $26,000 in surveying equipment. Perez told deputies after his arrest that he stole the equipment because he thought that the business was going under and that he would sell the stolen products if he needed to “make a few bucks,” the arrest report states. Ragsdill admitted to his crimes and apologized.

Both men were released on one charge each of scheming to defraud on $10,000 bonds.

Rotary Announces 2014 PigFest & Wild Game Dinner Feb. 21-22!

By Gary Nager

As a primary media sponsor of the event, I am thrilled to be able to announce that the Rotary Club of New Tampa, in conjunction with five other local Rotary Clubs (New Tampa Noon, New Tampa Evening, Wesley Chapel, Temple Terrace and Tampa North), will host the tenth annual — and newly expanded (see below) — “Rotary PigFest,” the weekend of February 21-22, at the Primrose Park off Commerce Park Blvd. in Tampa Palms.

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Wesley Chapel Man Injures 6 In I-75 DUI Crash

By Matt Wiley,

A Wesley Chapel man has been charged with driving under the influence, following a crash on I-75 in which his vehicle struck six people.

According to the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP), John Hegarty, 47, of Meadow Pointe, was traveling south on I-75 in the outside lane, just south of the S.R. 56 interchange, in his 2004 BMW sedan.

At the same time, FHP reports, a 1997 Honda Civic was stopped in the outside lane of southbound I-75 with its emergency lights flashing. In front of the Civic was a 1998 Toyota sedan, which had a flat tire. The six occupants of the two vehicles all were outside, between the two cars, while the flat was being changed.

The FHP report states that, as Hegarty approached the vehicles, he tried to switch from the outside lane to the center lane, but lost control of his car. The front of Hegarty’s BMW struck the left rear of the Civic, propelling it into the back of the Toyota.

The colliding vehicles, the report states, struck all six of the pedestrians, with each sustaining varying degrees of serious injuries. Jerrick Vann, 24, Nagy Ferguson, 24, and Kenneth Collins, 19, were transported to Tampa General Hospital, while Brittany Vaughn, 19, Erica Berry, 22, and a 17-year-old were taken to St. Joseph’s Hospital in Tampa.

Hegarty was found to have a blood alcohol content of 0.10 (just above the legal BAC limit of 0.08) and was charged with felony DUI with serious bodily injury, driving with a suspended license with knowledge of it being suspended, failing to drive in a designated lane and violating business-purposes-only restrictions on his driver’s license. Hegarty also admitted to deputies that he had taken two Xanax pills prior to the incident. He since has been released from the Pasco County Jail on a $3,500 bond.

 

City Approves Annexation Of Planned Development Near The Hammocks

The Tampa City Council has approved the annexation of land behind Wharton High for a future Taylor Morrison development.
The Tampa City Council has approved the annexation of land behind Wharton High for a future Taylor Morrison development.

By Matt Wiley

A proposed development in New Tampa is one step closer to becoming a reality, as the Tampa City Council has initially approved the annexation and rezoning of the land that community will be constructed upon into the city limits, following the ordinance’s first public hearing.

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