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An Iraqi national has been sentenced to federal prison after being convicted of attempting to smuggle guns through the Port of Savannah. Nihad Al Jaberi, 43, of Clarkston, Ga., was sentenced to 94 months in prison after a U.S. District Court jury in February convicted him on charges of Smuggling, Failure to Notify a Common Carrier, and Submitting False or Misleading Export Information, said David H. Estes, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. U.S. District Court Judge R. Stan Baker also ordered that Al Jaberi be referred to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for deportation after…

Two individuals, a man and a juvenile, have been charged after officials with the South Central Drug Task Force said they discovered contraband, including suspected marijuana, in a football thrown within the guard lines at the Irwin County Detention Center. A release regarding the arrests states, “On August 5, 2022, two subjects were taken into custody after an investigation was initiated on a prior date where contraband including suspected marijuana, cellular devices, and drug-related objects were thrown within the guard lines at the Irwin County Detention Center. The initially listed items were within a football that had been…

Wiregrass Georgia Technical College is proud to announce two students who medaled at the 57th Annual National SkillsUSA Competition. The National SkillsUSA competition was held in Atlanta. Students from across the nation competed in 103 different trade, technical, and leadership fields. All competitions are designed, run, and judged with the help of industry, trade associations, and labor organizations, and test competencies are set using industry standards. Top student winners received gold, silver, and bronze medallions. Many also received prizes such as tools of their trade or scholarships to further their career and education. The SkillsUSA Championship is for…

Flip Flippen is a New York Times best-selling author, serial entrepreneur, psychotherapist, and the founder and chairman of the Flippen Group, one of the largest educator training and team development companies in North America. Flip spoke to all Coffee County Schools employees at convocation on August 5, 2022. He shared valuable information to Coffee County Schools staff as they work to support students and their families, with his initiative, Capturing Kids Hearts, which equips professionals in K-12 education to implement transformational processes focused on social-emotional wellbeing, relationship-driven campus culture, and student connectedness. Mr. Flippen is one…

The Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) continues to closely monitor the current outbreak of monkeypox in the state. As of today, there are 625 confirmed monkeypox cases in Georgia. Testing and vaccination are available in health districts throughout the state; however, vaccine supplies from the federal government remain limited. The monkeypox virus can spread from person-to-person through direct contact with the infectious rash, scabs, or body fluids. It also can be spread by respiratory secretions during prolonged, face-to-face contact, or during intimate physical contact, such as kissing, cuddling, or sex. More than 90% of the…

The GBI arrested Travion Snell, age 22, of Douglas, on August 3, 2022, and charged him with Felony Murder and Aggravated Assault in relation to the shooting of Savion McRae that happened on June 18, 2022. Shamond Campbell, age 18, of Douglas, was previously arrested for Felony Murder and Aggravated Assault. Campbell and Snell are at the Lowndes County Jail. Rodarious “Rod” Swanson, age 24, is still wanted on the charges of Felony Murder and Aggravated Assault. On Saturday, June 18, 2022, the Lanier County Sheriff’s Office requested the GBI Regional Investigative Office in Douglas to conduct a…

A federal judge in the Southern District of Georgia has sentenced Travis McMichael, 36, to life plus 10 years in prison; and his father Gregory McMichael, 66, to life plus seven years in prison; and William “Roddie” Bryan, 52, to 35 years in prison, for committing federal hate crimes and other offenses in connection with the killing of Ahmaud Arbery, a young Black man, who was jogging on the public streets of a Brunswick neighborhood when he was chased down and shot to death in February 2020. All three defendants were convicted at trial in February 2022 on…

Former Waycross Judicial Circuit Superior Court Judge Clarence Blount passed away at his home with his family by his side on Sunday, August 7. He was 96. His parents were the late Mae Couch and Charlie B. Blount of Pierce County. Judge Blount graduated from Blackshear High School in 1943 as his class salutatorian. He attended the University of Georgia and graduated in 1950 from the University of Georgia School of Law (Lumpkin Law School). He subsequently practiced law in Waycross and in 1965, joined Lamar (Swampy) Gibson and Baker McGee in the law firm of Gibson, McGee…

The Coffee County Drug Unit (CCDU) announced another slew of arrests made in July, varying from charges of possession of methamphetamine to the distribution of controlled substances. The arrests include: July 11 The CCDU arrested Berrie Durrance on an outstanding warrant for a parole violation. CCDU officers located two wanted subjects, Jason Sanders and Sharon Snipes, at a local store. The couple was wanted on probation violation warrants for possession of methamphetamine. Another wanted probationer, Alexa Austin, was located and arrested. Austin was on probation for methamphetamine-related charges. The CCDU assisted an…

Sharon Reddick Abbott, age 67, of Sylvania and formerly of Douglas, widow of Larry William Abbott, passed away on Thursday morning, August 4, 2022, at her home with her family at her side. Sharon was a daughter of the late Ethridge Reddick, and the late Hilda Jeffers Reddick Smith. She born on August 7, 1954, in Sylvania, Georgia. Sharon was a member of First Baptist Church of Douglas, Georgia. She worked as a sales agent selling mobile homes. In addition to her parents and husband, she was also preceded in death by…