Smith was chatting online with an undercover law enforcement officer he thought was a 13-year-old girl before he was arrested by the Marion County Sheriff’s Office.
Firefighters quickly extinguished the flames but the residents required immediate medical care and the family pet died in the blaze.
Both teens were found in Marion County in 2022, and both murder cases remain unsolved.
The City of Belleview continues to expand the capabilities of its municipal notification system.
The prescribed burn covers approximately 100 acres.
No one was injured when fire claimed an abandoned house in Ocala on Feb. 24, 2026.
Laura Flores, 21, was allegedly caught on surveillance video striking, kicking and pushing down multiple children.
The truck fire caused all lanes of northbound I-75 to be blocked, but some lanes are reportedly now open.
The suspect admitted to causing the injuries that led to the child’s death.
Local luminaries gathered for the ceremonial groundbreaking for the forthcoming Ocala Fire Rescue Station #8.