Professional Experience

Hired in 2019 as the Safety and Security Specialist at WINK News. FBI Special Agent 1996-2017 serving in Atlanta, New York, FBI HQ and Quantico, VA. Served in the Navy, both on active duty and the reserve, retiring as a Commander in 2011.

News Philosophy

Work to help the citizens of SWFL keep their family, home, cyber, and finances safe and secure.

Hobbies & Interests

Flying, fishing & luge.

Education

Masters in Homeland Security from American Military University, Bachelors in Communications from the University of Miami.

Likes best about Southwest Florida

The people, along with the weather, and no DC traffic!

Hometown

Poughkeepsie, NY.

Watch out for online tutors extorting students with services

Crooks are going after struggling students with a deal that’s hard to refuse, and this one comes with a blackmail twist. Many students are looking to online tutors for help. Homework is bad enough, but becoming a victim of extortion is a thing now. Parents and students wanting good grades are going online to hire […]

internet predator scam

Law enforcement’s tricks to catch online predators

An elementary school teacher was arrested for trying to have sex with a 2-year-old girl. A father posted online looking for someone to share the cost of a hotel room with him and his daughter. The father called 911 after deputies in Palm Beach County said Xavier Alexander asked if he would ever be alone […]

facebook ipad

Scammers posing as your Facebook friend to offer you a COVID-19 grant

COVID-19 has ravaged America for more than one year. Not only has it affected the health of many people but also their pocketbooks. So, people are looking for ways to make ends meet during this stressful time. You get a message from a good friend on Facebook and they tell you they’ve got a deal […]

Lottery scams promise you money but are out for your personal information

These new lottery scams make it seem like you are about to get some money. But, the people sending them to you could be fishing for your personal information and your money. Manuel Franco of Wisconsin recently won the lottery. And now he wants to share some of his $768 million with you. Except that […]

Man rams car into 2 Capitol police; 1 officer, driver killed

A Capitol Police officer was killed Friday after a man rammed a car into two officers at a barricade outside the U.S. Capitol and then emerged wielding a knife. It was the second line-of-duty death this year for a department still recovering from the Jan. 6 insurrection. Video shows the driver of the crashed car […]

Training teaches firefighters how to survive any situation, protect each other

Firefighters are a family, and families protect each other. That’s why all new firefighters go through survival training before they hit the front lines. WINK News safety and security specialist Rich Kolko and photojournalist Eric Mills were able to see the class up close. WATCH their report above.

Amazon

Scam alert: Watch out for phony calls from Amazon

With so many more of us at home, we are online shopping more than we used to. And criminals are catching on and taking advantage of those clicks. And many are falling for scams. Amazon ships more than 1.6 million packages each day. That gives crooks an opportunity to find ways to steal your personal […]

Most Wanted Wednesday fugitive behind bars thanks to viewer tip

This week we featured Mervin Nicholas on WINK News’ Most Wanted Wednesday, and right after it aired, a tip was received from a viewer like you that led to his arrest. Nicholas was wanted for failure to register as a sexual offender. He was convicted of lewd and lascivious behavior for harassing a 13-year-old girl […]