Augusta, GA

What led to GBI investigation for Burke County sheriff

Published

2 years ago

May 9, 2023

What led to GBI investigation for Burke County sheriff

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The Georgia Bureau of Investigation, GBI, says it’s investigating Burke County Sheriff Alfonzo Williams.

The GBI confirmed this Monday night time.

At this level, we don’t have many particulars in regards to the scope of this investigation.

However this comes after a number of I-TEAM investigations relating to Williams.

Two impartial monetary audits had been accomplished by the accounting agency Lanier, Deal & Proctor from September 2021 by means of July 2022.

The I-TEAM reported on this in October of 2022.

The audit investigated how the sheriff’s workplace spent almost $250,000 of grant cash on turkeys and toys for the group.

These grants had been from the Waynesboro Housing Authority for housing authority property and Georgia Energy for security at Plant Vogtle.

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The audit additionally discovered the sheriff spent greater than$41,000 on eating places, journey, and shops on a county bank card that the county commissioners say they by no means licensed.

“I feel it’s as a result of I’m younger and Black, they usually don’t desire a Black man to be in charge of cash and spending. I hate to equate it to that,” stated Williams on Oct. 17.

Lower than two weeks after we broke down the audit, on Oct. 24, the county was alerted about greater than $53,000 in confiscated belongings or seized monies that has been lacking for six years.

The county began asking questions and sat down with the I-TEAM in March.

“I began asking questions, trying into [it.] I couldn’t discover any deposits that matched that quantity of $53,871.31,” stated County Supervisor Merv Waldrop, on March 27.

Per week after the county began asking questions, the cash was deposited at Southern Financial institution by a deputy in uniform. Though it was the precise amount of cash, the denominations don’t seem to match the quantities on the asset sheet.

“Your purple flags go up, and also you suppose, effectively, what … what’s happening right here? It warrants asking extra questions,” stated Waldrop.

Quick ahead to Feb. 16, the GBI confirms they opened an investigation into irregularities in coaching data with former Waynesboro Police Division Officer Gary Jenkins.

Williams was the teacher for the lessons in query on the Burke County Sheriff’s Workplace.

He put this video on Fb saying he couldn’t bear in mind the date of the category so he put it down because the twenty ninth.

“I agreed to present him the instruction and provides him credit score for the instruction after it was full. I did try this,” stated Williams on Feb. 21.

The sheriff’s telephone report, and GPS present he was not in Waynesboro on the time the coaching supposedly occurred.

After two months and several other requests later, the I-TEAM sat down with Williams on Might 4 to attempt to get some solutions about his spending, coaching data, and the lacking $53,000.

Will Rioux: “The group was asking the place that cash went for six years that randomly confirmed up when questions had been being requested, the place was that cash for six years?”

Sheriff Williams: “Look, each choice that I make relating to any expenditures on this workplace is finished with the utmost integrity in a method that enables me to meet my constitutional obligations. I used to be very accountable in the way in which we deal with our budgetary enterprise. I’m going to proceed to take action.”

Will Rioux: “So, you’ll be able to’t say the place these funds had been, what they had been used for in any respect, or in the event that they had been right here?

Sheriff Williams: “The cash is there. The cash has at all times been there. The cash has by no means been lacking. All of this facade that the cash was lacking and abruptly, it seems, is bulls**t.”

Will Rioux: “Hear, there’s this vital … There’s a vital GBI investigation proper now happening into coaching data. I imply that considerations everybody.”

Sheriff Williams: “Is {that a} budgetary situation?”

Will Rioux: “It’s not, however I haven’t had the possibility to ask you about that.”

Sheriff Williams: “You requested me to come back and discuss budgetary points, and I might respect you being easy.”

Now, the GBI is launching a restricted preliminary inquiry into considerations and allegations relating to the sheriff. Which means it’s the primary investigation to find out if there’s sufficient proof to proceed with a trial or authorized motion.

The county supervisor’s workplace says county commissioners licensed his workplace to show over all proof to the GBI and district lawyer.

Emails between the GBI and the county supervisor’s workplace present on Feb. 10, the GBI and DA met to debate shifting ahead with the investigation.

We’ve reached out to the GBI to see if that is prison in nature or what precisely they’re trying into.

They are saying they can not share any extra data.

We’ve reached out to the Burke County Sheriff’s Workplace for remark, however we have now not heard again.

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Augusta, GA

First look at Augusta’s new grocery store ahead of opening day

Published

4 hours ago

January 17, 2025

Press Room

First look at Augusta’s new grocery store ahead of opening day

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – We got an inside look at Augusta’s newest grocery store, FreshTake.

It’s located next to the Outback Steakhouse on Washington Road, where Whole Foods used to be.

FreshTake touts itself as an elevated shopping experience with a focus on fresh, ready-to-eat meals.

There is a butcher shop, seafood counter, specialty food stations like sushi, pizza, pasta, juices and smoothies and a Starbucks coffee shop located inside the store.

There’s also a beer and wine bar inside the grocery store and a BBQ smoker outside.

“I always wanted to have a store that had an abundance of food service offerings on one side just like you see here. I’m super happy and excited I was able to bring this to the Augusta community to enjoy,” said Jackson Mitchell, CEO of FreshTake.

FreshTake opens its doors to the public on Monday at 10 a.m. for its soft opening with a grand opening set for January 30.

The store tells us it is also committed to ensuring no food goes to waste and is partnering with Golden Harvest Food Bank.

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Augusta, GA

What the Tech: Device and software that turns your car into a self-driving one

Published

12 hours ago

January 17, 2025

Press Room

What the Tech: Device and software that turns your car into a self-driving one

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Self-driving cars are no longer a futuristic concept; they’re on the roads today. One might have passed you on the way to work.

But what if you don’t want to buy a brand-new car to experience this technology? The Comma 3X device and Openpilot software offer a solution, turning your existing car into a self-driving vehicle.

How Does it Work?

The Comma 3X connects to your car’s safety features, such as lane assistance and adaptive cruise control. It uses cameras to monitor the road and the driver, and the Openpilot software takes control of the car’s steering, acceleration, and braking.

“It’ll never jerk the wheel,” said Comma’s Adeeb Shihadeh at CES 2025. “The system is best at, you get on the highway click the engage button on your steering wheel and you sit back and you watch it.”

Users have uploaded dozens of videos to YouTube of Comma and Openpilot on their commutes and on long drives on the interstate.

“You can let the system just run on the highway for hours without intervention,” Shihadeh said. “We have experimental mode with red lights, stop signs. We have a lot of users driving around with that. They drive in the city and they’re really happy with that.”

Comma’s “chill mode” is best for anyone not quite ready for a device to take over all of the driving.

How safe is it?

Shihadeh says he believes it’s actually safer than a human behind the wheel making all of the decisions.

“We have lots of data that shows that driving with open pilot does change the driver a bit and you end up being a more attentive driver. And it’s really interesting because you don’t know when you’re distracted. It’ll beep and say, ‘hey, look at the road and it keeps escalating from there,” he said.

The Comma device can be installed easily by users and there are many helpful videos and instructions available on YouTube. There are also active communities of Openpilot drivers on Reddit and Discord.

Features and Benefits

Lane Keeping: The system helps keep your car centered in its lane, reducing the risk of drifting.
Adaptive Cruise Control: Maintains a safe following distance from the car ahead, adjusting speed as needed.
Driver Monitoring: A camera inside the car ensures the driver stays attentive. If the driver’s eyes wander, the system issues a warning and can even slow the car down.
User-Friendly: The device is easy to install and use, and the software is regularly updated with new features and improvements.
Affordability: At $1,000, it’s a more affordable option than buying a new self-driving car.

Safety and Reliability

Comma boasts that users have logged over 100 million miles with Openpilot, and the software is constantly being refined.

The driver monitoring system helps ensure safety by keeping the driver engaged. However, it’s important to remember that the driver is still responsible for the car and must be ready to take control at any time.

Openpilot works with over 275 car models. You can check the Comma website to see if your car is compatible.

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Augusta, GA

Augusta leaders decide fate of Old First Baptist Church

Published

20 hours ago

January 17, 2025

Press Room

Augusta leaders decide fate of Old First Baptist Church

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The Augusta Historic Preservation Commission decided on the future of the Old First Baptist Church building on Thursday.

The organization is giving the property owner 10 days to take action in repairing the building.

We spoke with officials about the building’s structural issues.

After testimonies from people with code enforcement, neighboring businesses and Historic Augusta, the Preservation Commission decided that the owner wasn’t making routine repairs and maintenance to keep the property safe and up to code.

That means a potential legal battle if the ball doesn’t get rolling soon.

One of the biggest pieces of downtown Augusta’s history is in danger of structurally failing.

The Augusta Historic Preservation Commission says after hearing testimonies and gathering evidence of the state of the building, they’re concerned for the future.

“It is on the endangered property list for historic Augusta but is on the state endangered property list. So, we’re not making up that it’s there’s a problem. There is a very serious problem with this building,” said Tara Conway, chair of the Augusta Preservation Commission.

The city’s code enforcement says the building is breaking several code violations, including making Augusta’s blight list dating back to 2021.

The property owner, Joe Edge, says he’s spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in repairs to keep the structural integrity of the church stable, like installing a new roof on the back of the building to prevent it from collapsing.

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“We’ve secured the front keeping the homeless out. We’ve had to secure not just put salt on. We’ve had to install wrought iron fencing around the basement to keep vagrants out of there,” said Edge.

However, code enforcement says there are no permits pulled for almost all of the projects Edge claimed there was work done.

It’s an issue historical stakeholders say they’re glad action is being taken because you can’t just rebuild historical markers.

George Bush with the Preservation Committee Historic Augusta said: “This is not just a local building. This is where the Southern Baptist Convention started. This is a national asset, and we are just trying to save it, and we’re doing everything we can.”

The city will now issue a notice to Edge for him to file a Certificate of Appropriateness, or COA, which is a permit with the city to allow him to start making external repairs.

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