Tonya Alanez
Sun Sentinel
Fort Lauderdale, FL, United States
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Past articles by Tonya:
Teen Tesla driver’s 116 mph speed caused fiery fatal crash, NTSB says
An 18-year-old Tesla driver lost control on a curve while doing 116 mph, which caused him to crash, which caused the car to burst into flames, killing both the driver and his passenger, also 18, the National Security Transportation Board says in its report into the tragedy. Contributing to the severity of the teens' injuries, the NTSB said, was the fire ignited by the car's crash-damaged… → Read More
Mourners pay tribute to union rep killed in Miramar Parkway shootout
Librarians and other Broward County workers turned out Wednesday to mourn Rick Cutshaw, their beloved union rep caught in his car and killed amid a police shootout in a Miramar intersection. In their words, he was a defender of fairness, a believer in second chances and a source of hope. → Read More
Drive-by shooting on Turnpike near Hollywood injures passenger, FHP says
Gunfire coming from a southbound white Ford pickup truck on Florida's Turnpike near Griffin Road injured a female passenger Friday night, the Florida Highway Patrol said. → Read More
Feds arrest self-described racist, say he posted threatening rants on YouTube
A self-described racist preaching genocide of all black people, blondes, brunettes, most Europeans and "hairy people of any races" has been arrested by the FBI in Davie for posting threatening videos on YouTube. → Read More
Family of driver killed by forklift sues contractors and unlicensed driver for $25 million
A lawsuit says that the most basic of background checks could have saved the life of a Canadian retiree. James Zakos died when a forklift driven by an undocumented and unlicensed construction worker tore into his convertible and killed him. His head injuries likely were not survivable, family lawyers said, but the crash definitely was preventable. → Read More
Child shoots mother in car at McDonald’s, Fort Lauderdale police say
A mother was hospitalized Thursday afternoon after her child shot her. Fort Lauderdale police have released scant details other than "child got hold of a gun inside vehicle and accidentally shot mother" while they were in the parking lot of a McDonald's on West Broward Boulevard. → Read More
Danger imminent if schools don’t comply now with safety laws, grand jury report says
Broward County stars as the poster child for flawed emergency communications, under-reported student issues and last-second scrambles to comply with statewide school-safety laws, according to a statewide grand jury report released late Thursday. → Read More
VA employees in South Florida took bribes and misused credit cards, feds say
The money was meant to buy supplies for ailing and hospitalized U.S. veterans in South Florida. But untold millions of it went to corrupt Veterans Affairs employees who misused government-issued credit cards over the last decade to buy overpriced hospital supplies from nefarious companies, federal prosecutors said Thursday. Fifteen South Floridians are facing federal charges in the… → Read More
Scooter driver on life support after crash; no ID for passenger who died
Two days after they were rear-ended, a scooter driver is on life support and detectives have been unable to identify his female passenger who died, relatives and the Broward Sheriff's Office said. → Read More
Driver in fatal hit-and-run ditched car at scene and reported it stolen, cops say
A day after hitting and killing a pedestrian on Oakland Park Boulevard and ditching his Nissan Altima at the scene, a 29-year-old man went to police to report his car as stolen, the Broward Sheriff's Office said. → Read More
Did cops in shootout blow it and put lives at risk? Victim’s family demands answers.
Almost immediately after the final gunshots rang out between armed robbers and police shielding themselves behind cars driven by innocent civilians, many questioned why the gruesome shootout cost lives. Did a UPS driver held hostage and an innocent bystander have to die? → Read More
Police chase ends with shoot-out on Miramar Parkway
Police chased a hijacked UPS truck from Miami to Miramar Thursday afternoon. The chase lasted nearly an hour and came to an end with a shootout on Miramar Parkway. When the shooting was over, somebody was lying on the ground in what appeared to be a pool of blood. → Read More
Rapper ABGM Spitta caught on video slugging a dad in front of boy, cops say
Davie police are looking for Courtney Paul Wilson, a 23-year-old rapper who goes by ABGM Spitta, PaperChasin Spitta and Alley Boy. They say he sucker punched a 50-year-old father at an arcade in front of the man's 8-year-old son. → Read More
Lauderdale Lakes woman dies after car flips in crash
The 49-year-old driver who died after her car was T-boned and flipped in Lauderdale Lakes on Sunday was a mother of four, grandmother of four and a former bus attendant for the Broward School District, relatives said. → Read More
Brrr! Temps expected to dip into the 40s in South Florida
Broward County temperatures are likely to dip to the 40s into early Tuesday. → Read More
FHP IDs wrong-way driver who died in 4-vehicle crash on I-95
A 28-year-old Plantation woman was the wrong-way driver who died after causing a four-vehicle crash Saturday on I-95, FHP said. → Read More
Two South Florida college deans targeted for bombings, feds say
A North Miami Beach man who was conspiring to bomb the deans of Broward and Miami-Dade colleges was arrested Monday. Salman Rashid had been expelled from both schools, according to a federal complaint. → Read More
Nearly 6 years after cyclist was decapitated by 91 mph driver, police make arrest
A homeless vet was violently decapitated in 2015 when he was hit by a driver going 91 mph. Nearly six years later, Boynton Beach police have arrested the man they say was behind the wheel. → Read More
City offers free parking to Fort Lauderdale residents during king tides
With the return of King Tides, Fort Lauderdale residents will be allowed to park for free in two city garages. → Read More
Investigators try to ID young victim who survived nearly drowning at the Lake Worth Pier
The near drowning happened more than a week ago at the Lake Worth Pier. The young man survived but investigators are still trying to figure out who he is, the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office said Thursday. → Read More