GCSPD needs help identifying Military Memorial vandals
GREEN COVE SPRINGS – The police department needs help identifying three people seen on surveillance cameras wanted in connection with the vandalism of the Military Memorial at Spring Park on May 13 at 5:25 a.m. Anyone with information should call the department at (904) 297-7300.

Woman jailed after man dies of deadly dose of fentanyl
LAKE BUTLER – A 31-year-old woman was arrested on May 22 after the Clay County Sheriff’s Office said she sold the fentanyl that led to the overdose death of a man on Oct. 2.
Cherie Nicole House was charged with manslaughter after Nicholas Arrick was found in his bedroom with a syringe and a bag of fentanyl in his hand. The medical examiner determined he died of drug toxicity.
Investigators used information from the victim’s cellphone and Cashapp records to determine House sold the deadly drug to Arrick.
Her bond was set at $200,003.

Two charged with concealing weapons, wearing facemasks
ORANGE PARK – Two men were arrested after they put on black face masks and refused to order food at Waffle House on May 22.
Clay County Sheriff’s Office deputies found the men – Nathaniel Bennington, 19, and Devin Viernes, 20, behind a closed business next to Waffle House shortly before midnight. When the two were searched, deputies found a rifle under Bennington’s clothing and a handgun on Viernes.
Both were charged with possessing concealed weapons and using facemasks not for the purpose of personal protective equipment.
Bond for both was set at $11,005.

Man jailed for violating
probation faces new crack
cocaine charges
GREEN COVE SPRINGS – A man who failed to pay his monthly probation fee and to attend drug treatment sessions now faces new charges after he was caught with crack cocaine.
Michael Christopher Dyne, 33, of Middleburg, was in the Clay County Jail for violating the terms of his probation after Clay County Sheriff’s Office deputies uncovered crack cocaine in his car on Jan. 20 when he was being arrested for violating terms of his probation. The crack cocaine charges were filed on May 16.
Dyne was granted probation after he was sentenced to two years, followed by two years of probation, after being convicted of two counts of making or possessing materials for explosive devices, carrying a concealed unlicensed fireman and felony battery. He failed to pay a $40 monthly fee for probation and forgoing drug treatment sessions, so he was re-arrested for violating his probation.
According to the Florida Department of Corrections, Dyne said he “doesn’t care about counseling or probation” because his girlfriend broke up with him.
He was initially arrested on July 20, 2020, after his father said Dyne pointed a gun at his head and threatened to kill him. When deputies arrived at Dyne’s home, they found CO2 canisters with fuses, a set of brass knuckles and a loaded handgun.
Dyne’s next court hearing will be on June 20.

Jacksonville man arrested for dumping tires at abandoned gas station
ORANGE PARK – A Jacksonville man was arrested on May 18 after an Environmental Crimes Detective with the Clay County Sheriff’s Office said he dumped 50 tires at an abandoned gas station at 364 Blanding Blvd. on Nov. 10.
Jessy Adams, 36, was charged with illegal dumping of more than 500 pounds. According to the affidavit for the arrest warrant, Adams unloaded 1,480 pounds of old tires from a U-Haul truck. Adams told detectives he unloaded five of the tires while the rest were thrown onto the property by someone called “Tommy Evans.”
Adams said he disposed of the tires from The Tire Place at 211 Blanding Blvd. A woman saw the men unloading the tires and took pictures of them with her cellphone. According to the affidavit, the men were offered $2.50 for each tire they removed from The Tire Place.
Adams’ bond was set at $5,003.

Woman jailed after CCSO find her passed out in car

GREEN COVE SPRINGS – A Clay County Sheriff’s Office deputy went to a home on North Fork Road to conduct a follow-up investigation about a stolen vehicle and he found a woman passed out in the front seat of her car with burned foil and syringes in her lap.
Brittany Kincaid Biggs, 32, was then charged with possessing a new legend drug and drug paraphernalia on May 18. She was then charged with grand theft auto on May 20 while in the Clay County Jail.
Her bond was set at $17,505.

CCSO: Man defrauded customers of their cellphones
OAKLEAF – A man was arrested on May 20 after the Clay County Sheriff’s Office said while he worked at ATT, he took cellphones from customers on Blanding Boulevard and sold them to local pawn shops without giving customers credit for their trade-ins.
David Jerome Morris, 23, of Oakleaf, was charged with fraud and swindling after CCSO said he made $7,483.60 from the scheme that spanned Jan. 8, 2022, to Nov. 6.
According to the affidavit for arrest warrant, he had someone sell six phones to Game Spot on Branan Field Road for $2,004.60.
The sheriff’s office said customers were defrauded by taking their cellphones, not logging them into the ATT system and selling them.
The bond for Morris was set at $50,003.

Gustafson indicted for distributing methamphetamine, cocaine
JACKSONVILLE – U.S. Attorney Roger B. Handberg announced the return of an indictment charging Edward Sherwood Gustafson, IV, 3, of Green Cove Springs, with two counts of possession with the intent to distribute a controlled substance involving methamphetamine and cocaine, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
If convicted, Gustafson faces up to 20 years in federal prison for each count of drug distribution and up to 15 years in federal prison for the firearm offense. The indictment also notifies Gustafson that the United States intends to forfeit a Smith and Wesson pistol and ammunition traceable to the firearm offense. The court ordered Gustafson detained pending trial. His trial is set for July.
According to the indictment, on Jan. 21, Gustafson was stopped by a Clay County Sheriff’s Office deputy who recognized him for an outstanding warrant. Since there was a warrant, and because the deputy smelled marijuana, Gustafson’s car was searched.
Three handguns were recovered as well as a duffle bag strapped to the engine bay area containing the drugs. Gustafson had seven previous felony convictions, and therefore, is prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition under federal law.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty. 
The case was investigated by CCSO and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It will be prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin C. Frein. The forfeiture will be handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mai Tran.

Man wanted in South Florida shot to death in Orange Park
ORANGE PARK – A man wanted for murder in South Florida was shot and killed on Friday, May 19, by two Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office deputies who tracked him down to an Orange Park conveince store parking lot.
According to JSO, the Broward Sheriff’s Office asked JSO a week earlier to help locate the suspect, 39-year-old Zonchez Delarfette Price. JSO searched a house and found two guns – one in a car and one inside the house. With that information, BSO obtained an arrest warrant.
JSO tracked the man to the parking lot in front of Eury’s Market. They boxed him in with their cars and ordered him to surrender.
According to JSO, he yelled, “I’m not getting out. You’re going to have to shoot me. You’re going to have to kill me.”
When he pointed a gun at the deputies, they shot him.
JSO Chief Alan Parker said, “They engaged him and eliminated the threat at that point.”
JSO Sheriff T.K. Waters steadfastly stood behind his officers’ actions.
“An officer is not required to let someone shoot at them before they use deadly force. That has never been OK, and it’s not OK in this situation. So they (the two officers) did what they did. They followed the law and it ended up like it did.”