Category: Uncategorized

  • John Huglen, Grayland, Washington: Fatal motorcycle crash on State Route 105 claims two Raymond residents

    A Sunday ride along the Washington coast turned fatal when two Raymond residents died in a sudden motorcycle crash along State Route 105 near Grayland. John W. Huglen, 33, was driving a 2022 Indian Chief motorcycle southbound with 35-year-old April L. Dundom riding along as his passenger. Just before 6:00 p.m., the motorcycle drifted off the pavement, setting off a chain of events that ended in tragedy before emergency crews arrived.

    State troopers reported that the incident occurred around 5:55 p.m. near milepost 14 in Pacific County. Huglen lost control as the motorcycle left the southbound lane and hit a rock embankment running along the edge of the road. The hard impact sent the bike veering clear across both traffic lanes, finally stopping on the opposite northbound shoulder.

    First responders arriving at the scene pronounced both Huglen and Dundom dead where the motorcycle came to rest. Sheriff’s deputies from Pacific County were tasked with notifying their families later that evening. Officials confirmed that both riders were wearing Department of Transportation-approved helmets when the crash happened.

    State Route 105 serves as a main artery through southwestern Washington, winding past coastal towns like Tokeland and connecting inland Raymond to the Pacific Ocean. The stretch near milepost 14 sits roughly thirty miles northeast of the coast, where local traffic meets long stretches of open highway. Road conditions along the rural route can present sudden hazards, though troopers have not specified what caused the bike to drift off course.

    Washington State Patrol investigators have listed the official cause as pending while they reconstruct the events leading up to the collision. Authorities are reviewing whether factors like speed, road surface issues, or mechanical trouble played a role. They have also noted that it remains undetermined if alcohol or drugs were involved in the crash.

    The sudden loss sent shockwaves through the small town of Raymond, where both victims lived. Word of the tragedy quickly reached friends and loved ones through official channels and personal outreach. The Pacific County Sheriff’s Office handled the delicate work of notifying next of kin, ensuring families learned the news directly from law enforcement.

    As state troopers continue their review, the 2022 Indian Chief remains a total loss, and the investigation stays open. Local authorities plan to release further details once toxicology tests and collision reconstruction reports are finished. For now, the stretch of highway near Grayland stands as the location of a tragic mystery that investigators are still working to solve.

  • Bonnie Groves, Noble County, Ohio: Wrong-Way UTV Driveway Turn Causes Fatal Two-Vehicle Highway Collision

    A routine trip down State Route 146 turned fatal Friday when a utility vehicle attempted a right-hand driveway turn from the wrong lane. The two-vehicle wreck happened in rural Noble County and took the life of a ninety-year-old driver.

    The driver was Bonnie Groves, a Pleasant City resident operating a dark green John Deere UTV eastbound on the highway. According to findings from the Ohio State Highway Patrol, Groves was traveling on the westbound side of the yellow line as she approached a private entrance.

    At the exact same time, a red sedan was driving eastbound in the correct lane. When Groves turned her UTV to the right to clear the roadway and enter the driveway, she pulled directly across the path of the oncoming sedan.

    The red sedan struck the right side of the John Deere UTV with full force. The broadside impact crushed the side of the light utility frame and left Groves critically hurt.

    First responders arrived at the crash site within minutes and began administering emergency care to the elderly driver. Medics quickly prepped Groves for transport and rushed her to Southeastern Ohio Regional Medical Center.

    Emergency room doctors at the facility performed life-saving procedures, but the impact proved too severe. Authorities confirmed she passed away at the hospital later Friday evening.

    Highway patrol officers spent the rest of the day analyzing the collision dynamics on Route 146. Troopers are continuing their investigation into line of sight, travel speeds, and lane positioning to figure out why the UTV was moving eastbound in the westbound lane before turning.

  • Bonnie Groves, Noble County, Ohio: 90-Year-Old Local Killed In Devastating John Deere UTV Driveway Crash

    State Route 146 runs straight through rural Noble County, a strip of pavement where neighbors know every fence post and driveway. On Friday afternoon, ninety-year-old Pleasant City resident Bonnie Groves was driving her dark green John Deere UTV along that familiar road. She was turning right toward a private driveway when everything went wrong in a matter of seconds.

    State troopers say Groves was heading eastbound, but her utility vehicle was traveling on the left side in the westbound lane. As she cut across the road to enter the driveway, an oncoming car hit her vehicle directly on the right side.

    The oncoming car was a red sedan traveling eastbound in its proper lane. The driver had almost no time to react before colliding broadside with the small utility vehicle crossing its path.

    Emergency crews rushed out to the scene on Route 146 right after local dispatchers got the call. Paramedics loaded Groves into an ambulance and took her straight to Southeastern Ohio Regional Medical Center in Cambridge.

    Medical staff at the hospital worked to stabilize the ninety-year-old driver and treat her severe injuries. Despite their efforts, Groves died from her injuries later that day.

    Groves was a long-time Pleasant City local who knew the roads and farms around Noble County inside and out. Her death hit the rural community hard, where folks routinely rely on small utility vehicles to move between fields, barns, and nearby houses.

    State highway patrol officers shut down the section of roadway for hours to map out the crash site, record vehicle positions, and clear the wreckage. Investigators haven’t said yet why Groves was traveling in the wrong lane before making her turn.

  • Sharon Bukulmez, Roque Bluffs, Maine: Cellphone ping guides divers to submerged vehicle carrying grandmother and two toddlers

    A cellphone ping retrieved during an urgent overnight search led Maine state troopers directly to a submerged vehicle in Pond Cove early Sunday morning, where a grandmother and her two small grandchildren drowned.

    Sharon Bukulmez, 61, was driving her grandchildren, 5-year-old Kinsley Grubb and 3-year-old Sawyer Grubb, back from a family event in Jonesboro around 8:30 p.m. Saturday. They were heading to Machias, a trip that usually takes under twenty minutes along Route 1.

    When the trio failed to reach their destination, relatives raised the alarm. Local police departments mobilized quickly, but finding a single car on coastal backroads in the dark proved difficult until investigators pulled location data from Bukulmez’s phone.

    The digital trace placed the mobile phone in the ocean near the boat ramp at Schoppee Point Road in Roque Bluffs. State police, dive teams, and marine patrol units redirected all resources to the dead-end coastal road before sunrise.

    At approximately 7:00 a.m. Sunday, divers spotted the car fully submerged in Pond Cove. Rescue workers pulled the vehicle from the water and found Bukulmez, Kinsley, and Sawyer inside.

    The Washington County Sheriff’s Office and the U.S. Coast Guard provided support as state authorities recovered the vehicle and cleared the scene. Investigators shipped all three bodies to Augusta, where state medical examiners will perform autopsies.

    Maine State Police say the circumstances around the crash remain under active investigation. Police have not released details on weather conditions or potential vehicle malfunction at the time of the incident.

    The boat ramp at Schoppee Point Road has a history of danger after dark. In July 2013, two women drowned at the very same ramp when their vehicle rolled off the asphalt into the water during heavy coastal fog.

  • Sharon Bukulmez, Roque Bluffs, Maine: Family party ends in tragedy as car pings underwater at boat ramp

    A weekend family gathering in Jonesboro ended in a nightmare for a Maine family after a grandmother and her two young grandchildren vanished on their way to Machias on Saturday night.

    Sharon Bukulmez, 61, of Mount Desert, left the party around 8:30 p.m. with her 5-year-old granddaughter, Kinsley Grubb, and her 3-year-old grandson, Sawyer Grubb, both of Bar Harbor. The drive to Machias should have been routine. When the three failed to show up, family members knew something was wrong and called the police.

    An overnight search began immediately across Washington County. Officers worked through the darkness, checking roads, local routes, and rural stretches where the car might have run off the pavement.

    The breakthrough came when officers with the Bar Harbor Police Department tracked the signal from Sharon Bukulmez’s cellphone. The data pointed straight to the water at the end of Schoppee Point Road in Roque Bluffs, near a public boat ramp.

    State police troopers, the Maine State Police Dive Team, and Maine Marine Patrol rushed to the scene. First responders located the car submerged in Pond Cove around 7:00 a.m. Sunday morning.

    Divers recovered the vehicle from the dark water and confirmed the worst. Bukulmez and both toddlers were inside the car, deceased. Emergency crews from the Washington County Sheriff’s Office and the U.S. Coast Guard assisted at the boat ramp throughout the morning.

    The bodies were taken to the Office of Chief Medical Examiner in Augusta for autopsies to determine the official cause and manner of death. State police are continuing to investigate how the car ended up off the ramp.

    For the families in Mount Desert and Bar Harbor, a quick drive between coastal towns turned into an unimaginable loss, leaving small tight-knit communities grieving three lives lost in a single night.

  • Elaine Knight, Conover, NC: 74-year-old arrested after fleeing fatal motorcycle hit-and-run

    What began as a simple crash response in Catawba County quickly turned into a felony investigation over the weekend. North Carolina State Highway Patrol troopers tracked down and arrested 74-year-old Elaine Wallace Knight at her home shortly after a fatal wreck on Springs Road.

    The incident happened around 11:18 a.m. on Saturday near the intersection of N.C. Highway 16. Troopers arrived to find 64-year-old Floyd Beal dead on the road after being thrown from his 1998 Honda VTR100 motorcycle.

    At first glance, officers thought Beal had simply lost control of his bike. But investigators scanning the asphalt noticed physical evidence left behind that told a very different story about his final moments.

    Car parts scattered near the crash site belonged to a champagne 2015 Ford Fusion. Investigators determined Knight was driving the Fusion and failed to yield while turning left onto N.C. 16, cutting right across Beal’s lane.

    Rather than pulling over or checking on the injured rider, Knight drove away from the intersection. Troopers gathered evidence at the scene and launched a search that led them directly to her Conover address.

    Officers located the damaged Ford Fusion parked at Knight’s house and placed her under arrest. She was taken into custody without incident and transported to the Catawba County Detention Center.

    Knight now faces charges of felony hit-and-run resulting in death, misdemeanor death by motor vehicle, reckless driving, and failure to yield. Magistrates set her bond at $28,000 secured as she awaits her court appearance.

  • Floyd Beal, Conover, NC: Hit-and-run driver leaves 64-year-old motorcyclist dead on Springs Road

    Floyd Beal was out riding his 1998 Honda VTR100 motorcycle on a clear Saturday morning in Catawba County. It was just after 11:00 a.m. when he headed down Springs Road near N.C. Highway 16, a stretch of road familiar to local drivers. He had no way of knowing his routine weekend ride was about to end in tragedy.

    At 11:18 a.m., state troopers got an urgent call about a severe wreck. Emergency crews rushed to the scene expecting to deal with a standard single-vehicle accident, finding Beal lying on the road after being thrown off his bike.

    Medics moved quickly to treat the 64-year-old Conover resident, but the impact had been far too harsh. Beal suffered catastrophic injuries from the fall and died right on the pavement before anyone could get him to a hospital.

    As investigators looked closer at the crash site, things stopped making sense for a single-vehicle wreck. Scattered plastic and car debris near the motorcycle did not match Beal’s Honda. Someone else had been there, hit him, and taken off.

    Troopers pieced together the evidence and figured out what really went down. A champagne 2015 Ford Fusion tried to make a left turn onto N.C. 16 from Springs Road, failed to yield the right of way, and turned straight into Beal’s path.

    Instead of stopping to help or calling 911, the driver kept going. That decision turned a bad traffic mistake into a criminal search, sending officers across town to hunt down the vehicle responsible for taking Beal’s life.

    The investigation led state troopers directly to the Conover home of 74-year-old Elaine Knight, where they found the damaged Ford Fusion and arrested her. Now, Beal’s family and friends are left grieving a man who never made it back from a quick Saturday ride.

  • Ricardo Richards, Princess Villas, U.S. Virgin Islands: Gunshots cut short young life while gunman remains at large.

    A residential neighborhood in La Grande Princess is searching for answers after a mid-day shooting left 29-year-old Ricardo Richards dead. The violence erupted without warning around 2:21 p.m. at the Princess Villas Housing Apartments.

    Multiple 911 calls flooded emergency lines as residents reported hearing loud gunfire ringing through the complex. Callers warned dispatchers that a man was lying unresponsive on the pavement outside.

    Virgin Islands Police Department officers and emergency medical teams rushed to the scene shortly after the calls came in. When paramedics arrived, they found Richards motionless on the ground and confirmed he was deceased.

    A family member later arrived to identify the body, confirming to investigators that the young man was indeed 29-year-old Ricardo. Police immediately cordoned off the area to look for shell casings and potential physical evidence.

    So far, police have not named any suspects or revealed a clear motive for the shooting. The lack of immediate answers has left people living in the Princess Villas community worried and on edge.

    Detectives from the Criminal Investigation Bureau have taken charge of the case. They are working around the clock to track down witness accounts and review any nearby surveillance footage from the area.

    Authorities are urging anyone with information about what happened to step forward right away. The VIPD is asking residents to call Crime Stoppers VI at 800-222-TIPS with any details that could help track down the person responsible.

  • Ricardo Richards, La Grande Princess, U.S. Virgin Islands: Tragic Sunday gunfire takes the life of 29-year-old resident.

    A bright Sunday afternoon turned into a nightmare for a family in La Grande Princess when 29-year-old Ricardo Richards was killed outside his home. It happened around 2:21 p.m. at the Princess Villas Housing Apartments, where quiet weekend routines were shattered by sudden gunshots.

    People living in the area immediately called 911 after hearing the rapid succession of shots. Some callers told dispatchers that a man was lying completely still on the ground near the apartment complex grounds.

    Emergency crews rushed to the scene as fast as they could. Police officers and paramedics reached the area within minutes, but they quickly realized the victim showed no signs of life.

    The heartbreak hit close to home when a family member arrived and identified the body as Ricardo Richards. His family was left stunned by the sudden violence on an otherwise normal afternoon.

    Neighbors described a scene of disbelief as officers taped off the residential area. Friends and relatives gathered near the perimeter, trying to make sense of how a regular Sunday could end in such pain.

    Those who knew Ricardo are remembering his presence in their lives. The sudden loss has left his close friends and relatives leaning on each other while trying to navigate the deep grief.

    Detectives with the Virgin Islands Police Department are now trying to piece together what led up to the fatal shooting. They are asking anyone who knew Ricardo or saw him that afternoon to contact the police or submit an anonymous tip through Crime Stoppers VI at 800-222-TIPS.

  • Kathy Tennyson, Hartselle, Alabama: Child Survives Off-Road Crash That Took Life of 69-Year-Old Somerville Driver

    State troopers are investigating a fatal single-vehicle accident that claimed the life of a Somerville driver and sent a child to the hospital Sunday evening. The crash occurred shortly before 6 p.m. on Alabama Highway 36, about one mile east of Hartselle in Morgan County.

    Investigators report that 69-year-old Kathy D. Tennyson was driving a 2016 Nissan Rogue near the 24-mile marker when the vehicle unexpectedly veered off the road. The Rogue struck a mailbox on the shoulder before colliding directly with a culvert headwall.

    The crash triggered a rapid response from local fire departments and emergency personnel. Upon arrival, rescue crews found significant damage to the SUV and immediately began efforts to free the occupants from the wreckage.

    Emergency crews loaded Tennyson into an ambulance and rushed her to Cullman Regional Medical Center – Hartselle Health Park ER. Despite emergency room staff working to stabilize her, Tennyson died from her injuries a short time later.

    A 10-year-old child sitting in the passenger area survived the initial collision. Medics evaluated the youngster at the scene and transported them to an area hospital for specialized treatment. The extent of the child’s injuries has not been publicly released.

    Officers with the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency are leading the ongoing crash investigation. Troopers are evaluating road conditions, mechanical factors, and driver status to pinpoint why the SUV departed the lane on a clear weekend evening.

    Drivers in Morgan County know that the shoulders along Highway 36 offer little room for error when a vehicle strays off the pavement. As state troopers complete their reconstruction of the wreck, local residents remain focused on supporting the surviving child.