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High School Athletic Director Bill Weed of Palm Beach Gardens Arrested for Video Voyeurism

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William-Weed-218x300William Weed, a former athletic director at Palm Beach Gardens High School, was arrested last week for allegedly watching a child for over a year using a camera hidden in a clock in the child’s bedroom.

Weed, 50, faces charges for video voyeurism and unlawful use of a two-way communication device. He was held at Palm Beach County Jail and was later released on $6,000 bond. It is unclear if he has acquired the services of an attorney.

According to the arrest report, investigators reportedly found a hidden camera disguised as an alarm clock inside a teenage girl’s bedroom in February. The victim discovered the camera when the clock started to make a static noise similar to that of a baby monitor.

The camera contained a memory card that held dozens of pictures and over 140 videos. Some of the images allegedly show the girl undressing and there are a few in which she is completely naked.

Weed denied knowledge of the hidden camera, but investigators reportedly found video footage in the memory card that shows him adjusting the device. An app for accessing the camera was also purportedly found on Weed’s phone. The camera only took pictures when manually directed through the smartphone app. Weed’s relationship with the victim is unclear.

Weed has worked with the Palm Beach County School District for 22 years. He has held a position as a teacher, director of sports programs, and cross country coach at Palm Beach Gardens High School since 2006.

He was removed from the school’s campus after police began their investigation in February, and was placed on administrative assignment at the school district’s transportation office. He is to resign from his position as teacher and athletic director on June 5 when his contract with the district expires. A spokesperson for the Florida Department of Education would not comment on Weed’s case.

Roosevelt-Miller-300x169Another case of misconduct involving a school employee and young teenagers was reported last week at Plantation Middle School. Roosevelt Miller of Fort Lauderdale, Florida was fired from his job as an after-care school counselor after it was discovered that he tried to entice young teenage boys to have sex with him.

Miller, 20, reportedly sent inappropriate text messages to three boys aged 13 to 14, offering them cash, gifts, and a trip to Disney World if they engaged in sexual activity with him. He faces several federal charges for using a cell phone to entice minors to engage in sexual activity. It is unclear if he has acquired legal representation.

According to federal prosecutors, Miller confessed to trying to lure seven underage boys into sexual activity. He reportedly told investigators that he fondled the private parts of one boy at a bus stop and attempted to get one of the victims to come to his home for sex at least once.

Miller was caught when a 13-year-old boy reported him to authorities for sending extremely inappropriate text messages. He continued to contact several of the children even after he was fired from his post and reportedly told the boys that “there was an investigation and he needed to be careful.”

Sources: 5.4.17 Weed Video Voyeurism.pdf & 5.3.17 Miller Enticement of Minors.pdf

Victor Villanueva Rivera of Boynton Beach, Florida Arrested for Hit-and-Run That Killed Brandon Wesson

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Victor-Villanueva-Rivera-300x169Victor Villanueva Rivera of Boynton Beach, Florida was arrested for his alleged involvement in a hit-and-run accident that caused the death of Brandon Wesson of Palm Beach Gardens.

Rivera, 48, faces charges for leaving the scene of a crash resulting in death and operating a vehicle without a driver’s license causing a death. It is unclear if he is being held on bail and the press did not list an attorney for him.

According to the arrest report, the incident took place after midnight at the intersection of Lawrence and Hypoloxo Road in Boynton Beach. Wesson, 21, was riding a Honda CBR motorbike west on Hypoloxo when the driver of a pickup truck traveling east on the same road crashed into him. The driver of the truck did not stop. Wesson was pronounced dead on the scene a few minutes before 1 a.m.

Investigators concluded that the hit-and-run driver did not see Wesson as he was making a left turn onto Lawrence Road. This caused the pickup truck to crash into the motorbike. The force of the impact broke the front fork and wheel from the motorcycle’s frame, and the driver of the pickup truck reportedly dragged the materials under his vehicle, leaving behind scrap marks and a fluid trial.

Police followed the scrap marks until the debris from the motorcycle was finally dislodged at a right turn lane on Lawrence Road. They continued following the leaking fluid trail north on that road before it turned east on Nowata Road. It eventually led them to the driveway of a residence in the 3000 block of Nowata Road where they found the truck parked after its owner had reportedly hit the car of a neighbor.

The home purportedly belongs to Rivera. Sources say police had to question Rivera in Spanish and he reportedly told them that he does not have a driver’s license because he is not in the U.S. legally. He also allegedly told them that he was not aware that he had struck anyone.

Alejandro-Ramirez-300x169Another hit-and-run crash was reported last week in Fort Lauderdale. Alejandro Ramirez of Fort Lauderdale was struck by a vehicle as he was pumping gas into his car in West Broward Boulevard. The impact threw Ramirez, 32, into some barrels and a metal pole. He was taken to a hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

According to the police report, Ramirez was struck at a gas station in the 700 block of West Broward Boulevard. Surveillance video footage from the gas station’s camera shows Ramirez pumping gas into his vehicle before he appears startled and then attempts to jump to the side of his car for safety, but not before the vehicle hits him.

The hit-and-run driver has not been found. Police believe the vehicle is a four-door, white Honda Accord that should have extensive damage on the front-passenger side. Anyone with information is asked to contact Broward Crime Stoppers.

Sources: 4.30.17 Rivera Arrested for Hit-and-Run Crash in Boynton Beach.pdf & 4.28.17 Ramiraz Hit-and-Run Crash in Fort Lauderdale.pdf

Michael Powell of Lauderdale Lakes, Florida Killed in Hit-and-Run Crash

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11-11-16-Campbell-300x169Michael Powell of Lauderdale Lakes, Florida was fatally struck by a hit-and-run driver as he was crossing West Broward Boulevard on February 3.

According to the police report, Powell, 67, was crossing from north to south on West Broward Boulevard just before 6 a.m. on Friday when he was hit by a dark blue BMW sedan. The sedan was traveling west in the 1400 block of the boulevard when the incident happened. The driver drove off and failed to stop to seek help for the injured man.

Police from the Sunrise Police Department located the BMW two hours later in the 2500 block of NW 89th Avenue in Sunrise. Fort Lauderdale police reportedly took custody of the vehicle and located the two people who were in it at the time of the crash. The names of the occupants have not been yet been released.

The cause of the crash is still unclear, but investigators are reportedly exploring the possibility of alcohol or other substances playing a role.

Statistics from the Florida Highway Patrol show that the number of hit-and-run crashes in Florida has remained steady over the years. In 2015, over 92,000 hit-and-run crashes were reported. The majority (more than 80 percent) usually only result in property damage, but more than 180 people were killed in such crashes in 2015.

The law requires a driver involved in a crash to stop. Leaving the scene makes the situation worse. A hit-and-run charge is a felony and if it results in a death, the responsible driver can face a minimum sentence of four years in prison.

Another fatal hit-and-run crash was reported in Davie on February 1. It led to the death of Emma Kelsoe and her dog, Rondo, and injured Victoria McCall. The crash took place at 7 p.m. on Wednesday night east of South Pine Island Road and south of State Road 84.

Kelsoe and McCall, who were neighbors, were walking Kelsoe’s dog on a bike lane when a driver veered off the road on SW 18th Street and struck them. Kelsoe reportedly pushed her neighbor out of the way before she was struck.

The crash killed Kelsoe and her dog, and left McCall unconscious. Fire rescue workers rushed McCall to Broward Health Medical Center where she treated for a minor spinal injury and was discharged a few hours later.

The vehicle never stopped. Witnesses told investigators that the driver looked like a man in his 50s with a female passenger. Surveillance video captured from Kelsoe’s home, which is just two doors down the road, shows a dark sedan driving with two people inside. Investigators are still searching for the driver responsible for the crash.

Source: 2.4.17 Powell Hit-and-Run Crash.pdf & Hit and Run – Bad to Worse.pdf