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Federal marshals arrested a pair of brothers Thursday suspected of robbing an elderly woman and throwing her to the ground at a Clay County store.

Two men snatched the woman’s purse Sunday at the Target store on Wells Road in Orange Park and drove away, according to a Department of Justice news release. Witnesses tried to block their vehicle, but the men were able to escape. The Clay County Sheriff’s Office recruited the U.S. Marshals Florida Regional Fugitive Task Force to assist in the investigation.

Donovan and Michael Brown were arrested separately. Michael Brown was taken into custody without incident while his brother was tracked to a gas station and arrested when he tried to run away.

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High School                  2007-2008 Grade    2006-2007 Grade

Clay -                                 B                       B

Fleming Island -                    A                       B

Google/Wikipedia
A pair of Japanese macaque cuddle up at the Milwaukee County Zoological Gardens in Milwaukee, Wisc., in 2006. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is looking for a similar macaque that was spotted in OakLeaf Plantation.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is seeking the public’s help to find a primate that has been sighted several times in the Eagle Landing subdivision of OakLeaf Plantation.

The monkey, believed to be a Japanese macaque, has been seen on Castle Oaks Court. State investigators received information and photos of the animal recently, said a Fish and Wildlife Commission statement.

Orange Park resident Robert G. Powell has frequently played the Florida LOTTO, using a combination of his birthday and his wife’s birthday.

On June 25, that combination of numbers — 07 09 21 22 44 47 — paid off in a big way as his was the only winning ticket in a $12 million payoff.

Powell claimed his prize in Tallahassee today, choosing a lump sum payout of $6,713,200. He purchased his ticket at the Kangaree Express at 1890 Kingsley Ave. in Orange Park. The retailer received a bonus of $25,000 for selling the jackpot-winning ticket.

Clay County police are on the lookout for a man who robbed the Bank of America branch at 29 Blanding Blvd. in Orange Park around noon today.

The man was white, in his 40s, about 200 pounds, 5-foot-6 to 5-foot-9, with brown hair and mustache. He was wearing glasses with black frames, said a Clay County Sheriff’s Office statement.

The man presented a bank teller a note indicating he wanted money and had a gun, but no gun was displayed or seen, the statement said. The teller gave him and money and he fled.

The criminal trial of former Clay County Public Works Director Arthur Ivey, expected to begin next week, has been postponed.

The trial is tentatively being rescheduled for mid-August because the discovery process is still under way, Assistant State Attorney Stephen Siegel said today.

Ivey, 53, faces four counts of official misconduct, four counts of grand theft, four counts of littering, two counts of violating state Department of Environmental Protection rules and six counts of petty theft.

The charges stem from a state and federal investigation into government corruption and illegal dumping in Clay County. The probe began in August 2004. Ivey and County Manager Bob Wilson resigned under fire in April 2005.

The Duval and Clay County courthouses both received bomb threats at about 10 a.m. today.

Mary Justino of the Clay County Sheriff’s Office said an unknown female caller told an emergency dispatch center employee there was a bomb in the Clay County courthouse and “you’ll never find it.” The Clay courthouse and the county administration building were evacuated shortly after 10 a.m.

She said the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office bomb squad is assisting Clay County in its investigation of the threat.

It was unclear if any Duval County buildings were being evacuated.

A gun-wielding robber who threatened to shoot a Jacksonville store clerk and fired at police during a chase Monday has been charged with eight felonies and is being held in jail without bail.

The pursuit started after police were called to a Dollar General Store robbery about 9:30 a.m. on the 6300 block of 103rd Street. A woman who worked at the store said a man who identified himself as a secret shopper lured her to the back of the store and demanded to get in the office.

She told police the man pulled a gun from his waistband and threatened to shoot her. The woman said she tried to close the door and hit her head when she jumped down some stairs.

By HAYS CARLYON and LAMAR THAMES
The Times-Union

Fleming Island’s football team is grieving following the death of standout middle linebacker Wesley Whiddon, who is the son of a Clay County school principal.

Whiddon, who was killed Wednesday night after being struck by a train, was one of the Golden Eagles’ top talents on and off the field. As a junior, Whiddon recorded 175 tackles and forced five fumbles last season as Fleming Island reached the Region 1-5A final. Whiddon is the son of W.E. Cherry Elementary School Principal Angie Whiddon.

Because I know you guys were talking about this the other day, here's an update with the Truck Nutz debate.

The AP wrote a beautiful lead sentence for this story-

The Associated Press

A provision in a highway safety bill that would have banned drivers from attaching replica bull testicles to their rear bumpers was snipped from the legislation. The bill will now go to the governor’s desk.

Sen. Carey Baker, R-Eustis, had sponsored the amendment that would have allowed police to give drivers a $60 ticket for displaying the dangling decorations.