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heartbren

Beach Fanatic
Sep 6, 2009
754
18
68
Blue Mountain Beach
Usually if there is an incident or public notice, it does get posted. There wasn't one in this case.

And I find it ridiculous not to post information because "it might scare tourists" - because even with all of the atypical incidents we've had recently, we still only have a fraction of the crime, sex offenders, violence etc. as the places they are visiting from.

For example, Fulton County has over 1300 registered sex offenders. Walton County has 119.



I agree 100%!! I know this is a tourist area, but the people that live here, and the tourists for that matter, need to now what is going on so we can be more aware. That should not even be an issue.
 

seagrovegirl

Beach Fanatic
Feb 9, 2008
3,828
464
Historic Old Point Washington
It's probably not an issue, thats why we are not getting any more info on the alleged assault. As I mentioned on post #15, if there was a potential or immediate danger we would be alerted by our Sheriff Dept. Relax, but be aware, lock your doors, don't go out at night alone, etc., things we should be doing anyway.
 

Alicia Leonard

SoWal Insider
We have a press release, but it is nothing more than what is posted above. Even if you had a feed, it would only display the same releases that most admin here already get, and that wouldn't amount to any more information.


I spoke with my editor about this and he DID NOT get a press release on this matter. He had to piece together the report we ran on it. In fact, I have not received a press release from the WCSO since June 26. They have been sending them to the main address for the paper which means unless the person who opens that mail(we have many people that use it for different departments) and forwards it to us, we won't see it. Up to June 26 we were receiving it directly. Checked all my spam filters, not one report.

edit: I got this worked out with their pio this morning. Should start to receive them again.
 

scooterbug44

SoWal Expert
May 8, 2007
16,706
3,339
Sowal
Update: They just made an arrest in this case.


NEWS RELEASE
Bonifay Man Arrested for Sexual Battery

For Immediate Release
August 25, 2011

The Walton County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) yesterday arrested Jason Waring Reed, 41, of Bonifay, Fla., for sexual battery.

“The evidence suggests this predator is responsible for victimizing others in multiple jurisdictions,” said Sheriff Michael A. Adkinson, Jr. “I applaud the participating law enforcement agencies for their assistance in helping keep our communities safe.”

The WCSO investigation began Aug. 2010 after investigators received information from a 51-year-old woman who alleged that an unknown man entered her Santa Rosa Beach domicile on or about Aug. 30, 2010 and committed sexual battery.
The WCSO investigation revealed evidence prompting the arrest of Reed for the 2010 crime and a July 19, 2011 crime involving a 27-year-old female who was sexually battered in a domicile in Seagrove, Fla.

Reed was charged with two counts of sexual battery, a first-degree felony; two counts of burglary with battery, a first-degree felony; and two counts of false imprisonment, a third-degree felony.

Reed was arrested yesterday in Washington County and booked into the Washington County Jail.

The Panama City Beach Police Department, Bay County Sheriff’s Office, Holmes County Sheriff’s Office, Washington County Sheriff’s Office and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement assisted in this case.
 

scooterbug44

SoWal Expert
May 8, 2007
16,706
3,339
Sowal
More info in a Northwest Florida Daily News article today - they are charging him with 2 crimes so far, think he may have committed 5 more here recently, and possibly 40 more in Panama City over the past 10 years!

He already has 2 prior convictions in Bay County and Valparaiso for exposing himself and if found guilty of these 2 crimes could get a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Jason Reed, who faces charges in two sexual assaults in Seagrove Beach, matches the description of a suspect in five other incidents in the same area over the last two years, according to court records.
The reported incidents involved a white man matching Reed’s description who exposed himself to women and asked for sex at Seagrove Beach town homes and hotels, according to the records.
In some of the reports, women stated that the suspect entered their home or hotel room and stood naked watching them sleep.
No charges appear to have been filed in the other incidents, but investigators cited them in requests for search warrants in Reed’s case.
The lead investigator for the Walton County Sheriff’s Office could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
“We are not able to speculate where other crimes may have occurred or the number of victims,” Sheriff’s Office spokesman Mike Morrison said. “The case is considered active and ongoing.”
Reed pleaded not guilty last week to charges in the two Seagrove Beach sexual assaults, which occurred almost a year apart.
On the night of Aug. 30, 2010, a man entered a room at the Seagrove Villa Motel on County Road 30A and sexually assaulted and masturbated on a 51-year-old woman from Louisiana.
Less than a mile away on July 19, 2011, about 1 a.m., a man entered through the unlocked sliding glass door of a town home and raped a woman who lived there and was asleep on the couch, according to arrest reports.
A few hours before the rape, a witness reported to the Sheriff’s Office that they had seen a nude man walking in the parking lot of the town homes, according to the court records.
Two days later, on July 21, a woman reported seeing a nude man walking in the courtyard of a town home complex about a quarter mile away, according to court records.
After the incident in July, Morrison said that the two assaults were unrelated. But after Reed’s arrest Aug. 25 he stated that during the investigation it was determined that the crimes were linked.
A Walton County investigator met with Panama City Beach police officers Aug. 16 and determined that the nature of the crimes and the suspect in the July rape was similar to a suspect wanted in more than 40 sexual offenses over 10 years in Panama City Beach, according to court records.
The incidents in Seagrove Beach and Panama City Beach all occurred within 17 miles of one another, according to court records.
Reed has prior convictions of exposing himself in Bay County and Valparaiso, according to court documents.
He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison on both sexual assault charges.
http://www.nwfdailynews.com/news/incidents-44767-five-sexual.html
 
Last edited:

Diamond Dave

Banned
Mar 6, 2011
50
0
Seagrove
The question still lingers, when did the local authorities have knowledge of the suspicious incidents reported PRIOR to the murder? I would think as soon as the incidents were reported, right? Why was a composite sketch not made or released of a suspect if women reported suspicious incidents, like exposure? As I have heard, there were several suspicious incidents reported prior to July 19th. I can appreciate not wanting to scare away the tourists... No, I can't. Crimes need to be disiminated to the locals, regardless of what the possible impact may have on tourism. We live here, they just visit.
 

Kurt

Admin
Oct 15, 2004
2,304
5,007
SoWal
mooncreek.com
The question still lingers, when did the local authorities have knowledge of the suspicious incidents reported PRIOR to the murder? I would think as soon as the incidents were reported, right? Why was a composite sketch not made or released of a suspect if women reported suspicious incidents, like exposure? As I have heard, there were several suspicious incidents reported prior to July 19th. I can appreciate not wanting to scare away the tourists... No, I can't. Crimes need to be disiminated to the locals, regardless of what the possible impact may have on tourism. We live here, they just visit.

You have your wires crossed. Please read more carefully and be more responsible.
 
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