Middleburg man charged with shooting convicted sexual predator

MIDDLEBURG – A family dispute ended on Dec. 18 with one man in the Clay County Jail facing attempted murder charges and another man in the hospital with a shotgun wound to his arm and facing charged for not registering as a sexual predator.
Sheffield was charged with attempted second-degree murder and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, while Cooper was charged with failing to report an address change as a sexual predator.
The incident started in early November when sheriff deputies tried to verify Cooper’s listed address, which was the same as Sheffield’s. More than a month later, Cooper returned to the address, where he was confronted by Sheffield. When Cooper tried to leave, Sheffield used a shotgun to keep him from driving away because he knew he was wanted for the predator violation.
By the time deputies arrived, Cooper had been shot, according to the arrest report.
According to the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, Gregory Alford Sheffield, 32, of Middleburg, was upset with his uncle, Daniel Anthony Cooper, 56, of Middleburg, over Cooper getting power of attorney over Sheffield’s grandmother.
Sheffield’s bond was set at $100,006, while Cooper’s bond was set at $75,003.

Old Jennings Road woman charged with 47 counts of
animal abuse
ORANGE PARK – The woman found with 266 animals, plus another eight that were born after the seizure, living in squaller on her 1.29-acre lot on Old Jennings Road now faces five counts of aggravated animal cruelty that led to deaths and 42 other animal cruelty charges.
Jennifer Michelle Wilkie, 51, was arrested on Dec. 17, less than two months after a Clay County Judge ordered all the animals – dogs, pigs, rabbits, goats, chickens, birds and two turtles – to be moved to the custody of county officials, and that Wilkie was to pay for the costs of a day-long raid at her house and agree to never own another animal. The animals have since been nursed back to health and all have been adopted by residents throughout Northeast Florida.

Orange Park man caught
secretly recording woman

ORANGE PARK – A 32-year-old man was arrested on Dec. 15 after a woman found a hidden camera in her cat’s scratching post in her bedroom.
Lake Bryan Stewart, of Orange Park, was charged with video voyeurism. He was released from the Clay County Jail after posting a $25,003 bond.
According to the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, the victim moved the scratching post to take a picture of a computer desk she wanted to sell. When she did, she saw an opening in the post and found a battery pack attached to it.
The victim made a controlled call to Stewart. With sheriff investigators listening, he said he did it because he liked the way she looked, CCSO said.

Man arrested following armed robbery at Orange Park MallORANGE PARK – A

Jacksonville man was arrested in Duval County and returned to the Clay County Jail on Dec. 13 to face charges of holding up a woman in the Orange Park Mall parking lot on May 11.
Henry Stephens III, 19, was charged with armed robbery while wearing a mask or hood after the Clay County Sheriff’s Office were called to the mall after a woman’s debit cards and cellphones were taken by three men near Sears in the middle of the afternoon.
Deputies used Locate My iPhone App to find her phone on Collins Road in Jacksonville. Navy Federal Credit Union Fraud Protection then alerted deputies surveillance cameras captured images of two men who tried to use her debit card at an ATM at a convenience store. They were seen joining the third man in the same car reported used for the mall robbery.
The cellphone app was used to track down her second cellphone to Brittany Lakes Lane. From there, deputies were able to zero their search to a house on Carson Lake, where William Lamar Scott, 20, lived.
The debit card was used again at another convenience store. This time, surveillance showed Scott trying to get money from an ATM.
Scott’s girlfriend owned a car that matched the description of the car at the mall and both ATM locations.
Scott was arrested on July 1 in Jacksonville and currently is in the Clay County Jail with a $750,003 bond.
Stephens is being held without bond. His next court appearance is scheduled for Jan. 4. Police are still looking for a third suspect identified as Cory Foster.

Middleburg couple get
probation, $500 fine for Jan. 6 riot

JACKSONVILLE – The Middleburg couple who pled guilty to participating in the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol was sentenced to probation and ordered to pay $500 each. Prosecutors wanted three months of home confinement, another two years of probation and $500 fines for Dana Winn and Rachel Pert. The judge gave two years of probation for Pert and 12 months for Pert.
Both told the court they wish they’d never gone to Washington, D.C., to join in the stop the vote rally following Joe Biden’s presidential victory.

Daniels’ trial set to start next month

GREEN COVE SPRINGS – The trial for former Clay County Sheriff Darryl Daniels will start on Jan. 21, according to the judicial assistant for circuit judge R. Lee Smith. Daniels is facing charges of tampering with evidence and three counts of making false reports as part of his extramarital affair with a former co-worker in Jacksonville. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement accused Daniels of asking technicians at the sheriff’s office to delete information from his cellphone after his affair became public.
To avoid conflicts, the case will be prosecuted by the Fifth Judicial Circuit that comprises of Marion, Citrus, Lake, Hernando and Sumter County. It will be adjudicated by the Seventh Judicial Circuit which is comprised of St. Johns. Flagler, Volusia and Putnam counties.
The trial, however, will be held at the Clay County Courthouse.