News & Updates

An Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office Investigation ended with a Crestview man charged with molesting a child on numerous occasions. 36-year old Brandon Dykes has been arrested on three counts of lewd and lascivious molestation of a child, four counts of promoting the...

The OCSO is investigating a drowning that took place around 10 p.m. July 25th off 100 Water Street near Fort Walton Beach. The 59-year old victim, no known address, was seen in distress, but due to murky waters initially could not be located when he went under. When...

A Shalimar man suspected in the stabbing death of his wife last May was found deceased at the Okaloosa County Jail in Crestview this morning. The 51-year old was discovered hanging in his cell during a routine cell check around 4:30 a.m. The Okaloosa County Sheriff's...

Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office investigators say the circumstances surrounding a man's death on Highway 98 early morning July 22nd appear to involve suicide or are the results of a tragic accident. The victim, a 31-year old tourist from Gainesville Texas, was having...

A traffic stop for speeding led to the arrest Sunday of a Mary Esther man for trafficking in methamphetamine, possession of a weapon by a convicted felon, and more. An Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office deputy pulled over 38-year old Joel Walls on Highway 98 in Mary...

The Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office is investigating an apparent drowning that took place in the Gulf of Mexico this morning around 8:15 off Okaloosa Island. Witnesses say the 40 year old victim, address unknown, had been swimming alone near The Boardwalk at 1450...

A man in a stolen car led Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office deputies on a chase near Eglin Air Force Base, Shalimar, and Wright and rammed a patrol car before deputies pushed him off the roadway with their vehicles and took him into custody. At one point, 39-year old...

The Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office is searching for 19-year old John William Galvao-Sahb for questioning in connection with the fatal shooting of a Fort Walton Beach man March 17th. 48-year old Earnest Riggs was shot inside his rental work truck while parked in the...

A Destin woman was taken into custody Tuesday following a string of 9-1-1 calls in reference to a reckless driver on Highway 98 heading across Okaloosa Island towards Destin around 2:30 p.m. Witnesses reported the white Ford Explorer hitting a traffic sign in the...

The Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office is searching for a suspect in connection with the fatal shooting July 10th of an 8o-year old Crestview man at Shoal River/Duggan Park south of Crestview. 22-year old Johnny Ray Kirk of Santa Rosa Beach has active OCSO warrants for...

Investigators are on the scene of an apparent homicide at Shoal River Wayside Park, aka as Duggan Park, off Highway 85 south of Crestview. A 9-1-1 call came in around 1:30 after an individual spotted a man on the ground with what appeared to be blood. OCSO...

A shooting outside a Destin nightspot that claimed the life of a Crestview man in May has been closed, deemed justifiable homicide by the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office. The State Attorney's Office reviewed and approved the findings. A 26-year old died from a single...

A North Carolina man has been charged with stealing the proceeds from a Destin real estate transaction designed to pay off a property on Okeechobee Cove. 57-year old Donald Washington III was arrested July 5th by the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office on a charge of...

***Update: The apparent drowning victim found in the Gulf near Destin Tuesday is identified as a 47-year old St. Martinsville Louisiana man. Family members say he dove under the water and never resurfaced. Lifeguards found him approximately 75 yards from the beach. A...

The victim of a shooting last night at a residence on Reeves Drive near Fort Walton Beach later died at Fort Walton Beach Medical Center.The Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office has charged 30-year old Haley Haire of 690 Reeves Drive Unit A with domestic violence related...

If you live anywhere near a school - don’t be surprised if you hear a tone and message coming over loudspeakers tomorrow morning at 9 a.m. That’s when the first official test of the new Okaloosa County Mass Notification System will take place!Okaloosa County, in...

A Crestview man wanted on two counts of aggravated battery and armed burglary was taken into custody at his home off John King Road last night after a four hour standoff with Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office deputies.When OCSO deputies arrived at the home of 37-year...

If you see something - say something = Two stolen guns and ammo recovered!A citizen in Destin who noticed two males dressed in black walking around a condominium complex on Gulf Shore Drive around 3 a.m. this morning called the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office to...

Enhanced Reward Offered for Information in Fatal Shooting -And NEW images showing sedan driven by individuals who may have knowledge about the crime.The Florida Sheriff's Association Criminal Apprehension Assistance Program (FSA CAAP) and Emerald Coast Crime Stoppers...

The victim of a fatal shooting outside his home on Bennett's End near Fort Walton Beach today has been identified as 28-year old Stoney Mathis.Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office deputies found his body in a wooded island directly in front of his address after responding...