Southeast
Florida convict to be executed for killing college student in forest, raping another
A Florida man convicted of killing a college freshman and raping the student’s sister while the siblings camped in a national forest 30 years ago is scheduled to be executed Thursday.
Loran Cole is set to be put to death just after 6 p.m. at Florida State Prison for the 1994 killing. Cole is also serving two life sentences for rape. The U.S. Supreme Court denied Cole’s final appeal earlier Thursday.
According to court records, Cole and a friend, William Paul, befriended the two college students in the Ocala National Forest. After talking around a fire, the men offered to take the siblings to see a pond. While away from the campsite, Cole and Paul jumped the victims and robbed them.
The brother, 18, who was a student at Florida State University, was beaten, had his throat slit and left in the forest. His sister, who was 21 and a senior at Eckerd College, was taken back to the campsite, where Cole tied her up and raped her.
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This image provided by the Florida Department of Corrections shows Loran K. Cole, convicted of kidnapping adult siblings camping in a national forest in 1994 before raping the sister and murdering the brother. He is set to be executed by lethal injection Thursday at Florida State Prison. (Florida Department of Corrections via AP)
The woman was left tied to a tree overnight and raped again the next day. She eventually managed to free herself and flag down a driver for help. Police found her brother’s body lying face down on the ground, according to court records.
Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the death warrant for Cole last month.
Lawyers for Cole, 57, raised several points in their appeal, including the fact that Cole was an inmate at a state-run reform school where he and other boys were beaten and raped. The state has since apologized for the abuse and this year passed a law authorizing reparations for inmates at the now-shuttered reform school.
Cole’s lawyers also argued that he shouldn’t be executed because he suffers from brain damage, is mentally ill and has Parkinson’s disease.
The state Supreme Court rejected the defense’s arguments.
Paul and Cole were convicted of first-degree murder. Paul was sentenced to life.
The execution will be the first in Florida since Michael Zack was put to death last October for the 1996 killing of Ravonne Smith.
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Southeast
Rep. Steve Cohen tells Pam Bondi that ‘worst of the worst’ are native-born Americans, not immigrants
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A House Democratic lawmaker told Attorney General Pam Bondi that the “worst of the worst” targeted by the Trump administration are actually native-born Americans, not illegal immigrant criminals.
Rep. Steve Cohen, of Tennessee, was speaking to Bondi during a combative congressional hearing over the Justice Department’s handling of files related to Jeffrey Epstein when he made his remarks.
“We need people working on the front lines and local law enforcement to protect our citizens from the worst of the worst,” Cohen said. “The worst of the worst are not the immigrants. The worst are the worst, records show, are native-born Americans, and they are committing crimes that hurt our citizens and our cities.”
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Rep. Steve Cohen said the “worst of the worst” are native-born Americans, not immigrants, during a congressional hearing. (Jonathan Newton-Pool/Getty Images)
“And you’re working against it,” he added. “And thank you for that, but by trying to get our local law enforcement, where we have an undercount of officers in Memphis, to leave Memphis and go to work for ICE to deport people is a wrong priority.”
The Trump administration has said that around 70% of the illegal immigrants targeted by federal immigration authorities have criminal records, including for violent offenses.
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Attorney General Pam Bondi testifies before a House Judiciary Committee hearing on “Oversight of the Department of Justice” on Capitol Hill on Wednesday. (Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty )
Many Democrats maintain that most illegal immigrants have not broken any laws aside from entering the United States illegally.
Bondi argued that local and federal law enforcement both need “strong people.”
“I’ve seen some of the worst of the worst, violent criminals, violent criminals who were in this country illegally,” she said. “We both know that.”
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Cohen also told Bondi that ICE was “running rampant” and that Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti were “executed” by federal authorities in Minneapolis as they allegedly impeded law enforcement operations.
“They were executed like (Homeland Security Secretary) Krisit Noem executed her dog, and that was wrong,” Cohen said. “And you should investigate those people. And you should investigate anybody that uses a weapon as a federal official or not, for civil rights violations.”
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Southeast
K-9 hit by vehicle during bank robbery chase keeps going and helps capture suspect
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A Georgia K-9 deputy was struck by a vehicle Wednesday while chasing a bank robbery suspect but got up, continued the pursuit and helped deputies take him into custody.
Fox 5 Atlanta reported that deputies with the Coweta County Sheriff’s Office were notified of a possible bank robbery in progress at the Regions Bank in Newnan, Georgia.
Authorities located the suspect’s vehicle and attempted a traffic stop, but the driver failed to yield, sparking a pursuit.
The chase ended when the suspect crashed and ran from the wrecked vehicle, officials said.
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A dog was hit by a vehicle in the process of pursing a suspect in Newnan, Georgia, on Feb. 11, 2026. (WAGA)
The driver lost control, and the car became wedged between a light pole and a tree, according to the local station.
Airbags were deployed, and the vehicle sustained heavy front-end damage, including blown-out wheels and damaged bumpers.
A K-9 handler then deployed his partner, Robbi, to track and apprehend the fleeing suspect.
A K-9 captured a suspect on foot despite being hit by a vehicle in Newnan, GA. (Karl Merton Ferron/The Baltimore Sun/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
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During the chase, Robbi was struck by a vehicle, but despite being hit, the K-9 continued the pursuit and helped deputies make an arrest.
Robbi was taken to Sweetwater Veterinary Hospital, where staff determined he suffered minor abrasions but no internal injuries. He is expected to make a full recovery.
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Fox 5 reported that authorities have not yet released the name of the man taken into custody or outlined the full range of charges he could face in connection with the reported bank robbery and ensuing chase.
The Coweta County Sheriff’s Office told Fox News Digital that the Newnan Police Department is leading the investigation.
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Southeast
TikTok-famous Hooters girls built viral following, but landlord had final say about their future
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A successful Hooters location that gained a following through its social media videos will be closing soon — which means the people behind the posts are preparing for one last Super Bowl Sunday.
When news broke that the Hooters in Boca Raton, Florida, was closing at the end of February because of the landlord’s decision not to renew the lease, longtime customers and employees were surprised, general manager Chris Torelli told Fox News Digital.
In a tough restaurant economy, closures can be a sign of decline. But this Hooters location built a cult following through TikTok dances, parody skits and viral videos.
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“We are a healthy, successful location, and in this economy, the places that close are the opposite,” Torelli said.
Over the years, the Boca Raton location distinguished itself by leaning heavily into social media. What started as a simple marketing experiment, Torelli said, evolved into one of the most recognizable Hooters social media accounts in the country.
Employees at the Hooters location in Boca Raton, Florida, have become viral sensations for their roles in the restaurant’s social media videos. (Hooters/@hootersbocaraton)
The videos — often featuring choreographed dances, playful jabs at local sports teams or scripted phone-call skits — resonated far beyond Boca Raton. Torelli said early viral success helped confirm the strategy.
“You get one or two that go viral, then you start seeing the comments and the interaction with the consumers,” he said.
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But the success wasn’t just about algorithms or follower counts. The goal “has always been to make it fun.”
“It’s not a business,” Torelli said. “I mean, we are a business — but Instagram, for us, is fun.”
Much of that fun came from the women who appeared in the videos. Hooters waitresses Amanda Hall and Sarah Glynn became familiar faces online, dancing, joking and often poking fun at themselves.
The social media presence helped turn the Hooters girls into “local celebrities,” Torelli said, as recognition followed them outside the restaurant.
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It’s something former employee Abigail Fuqua still experiences more than a year after leaving the Boca Raton location. She said she’s still recognized from posts still circulating online.
“As soon as you open that door up, and you immerse yourself into it, you just have fun,” Fuqua said of participating in the videos.
Although Abigail Fuqua (at left, and standing on the table at right) no longer works at Hooters, she said she still gets recognized in public from the viral videos that still circulate online. (Hooters/@hootersbocaraton)
The social media success has also become a reliable job-recruiting resource, Torelli said.
“We’ve stumbled upon one of the best marketing tools to recruit future Hooters girls,” he said. He noted the “tremendous success [in] hiring staff” who wanted to work there because of the videos.
As the restaurant prepares to close its doors after 16 years, Hall and Glynn describe the workplace as more than just a job.
“These girls are my sisters now,” Glynn said.
“It kind of became more like a home and a family,” Hall added.
Hooters bartender Amanda Hall gets beer from the tap for a customer. She said her job has been “like a home and a family.” (Peter Burke/Fox News Digital)
Still, there is optimism about the future. Torelli said the “plan all along” was to find a new home nearby.
“We’re not done yet,” he said.
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For the employees, the future is less certain — but not without gratitude.
“Life is going to take you in different directions, but I had a great time while I was here,” Hall said.
Current and former employees of the Hooters in Boca Raton pose for a photograph with their work “family.” (Hooters)
Glynn joked that the end of the Boca Raton location may mark the end of an era for her.
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“It may be time to retire the orange shorts a little bit, because I don’t know how I can do any Hooters other than Boca,” she said.
“I had a great time while I was here.”
Even after the restaurant closes, its social media presence isn’t likely to fade, Torelli said.
Hooters waitress Sarah Glynn said she doesn’t know what will come next once the Boca Raton location closes at the end of the month. (Peter Burke/Fox News Digital)
“We owe it to our guests and our staff and the people in the community, because we do so much with them, to continue to do this,” he said.
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Fox News Digital reached out to the property management company for comment.
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