Page 2 - Florida Sentinel 5-13-16 Online Edition

Features
Former Police Employee
Officials Plan 2016 Tampa Bay Hurricane Expo
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
For the ninth consecutive year, the City of Tampa, Hills- borough County, and the Mu- seum of Science and Industry (MOSI) are joining forces to host the 2016 Tampa Bay Hurricane Expo. The event will take place on Satur- day, May 14th, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m., at the Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI), 4801 E. Fowler Av- enue.
The theme for the 2016 Tampa Bay Hurricane Expo this year is “Be Ready Tampa Bay!” The Expo is free and open to the public. This year’s Expo has been referred to as the largest expos of its kind in Tampa Bay.
The Expo is designed to raise awareness and provide the most recent information on hurricane preparation. The Expo will provide resi- dents the opportunity to learn what to do before, during, and after a storm. Residents will also learn the importance of having a disaster plan in place before the hurricane season begins.
The Atlantic Hurricane season begins on June 1st and ends on November 30th.
Chief Tom Forward of the Tampa Fire Department and Emergency Manager
CHIEF TOM FORWARD ... Tampa Fire Department
said, “The gates and doors will open to the public at 9:45 a.m., with presentations and events beginning at 10 a.m. While this free event is de- signed to provide something for everyone in the family, its primary focus is to expose members of our community to issues relating to hurricane preparedness, response, re- covery and mitigation in order to save lives and prop- erty throughout the Tampa Bay Community.
“We are encouraging our community to come out and spend a free day at MOSI and enhance your family’s health and safety as it relates to hur- ricane and tropical storm safety by participating in this fun filled and educational forum.”
Those who attend the Expo can learn about evacuation zones, preparing disaster kits, and learn more about disaster planning. Every family is en- couraged to create a disaster plan to help them quickly re-
spond to an emergency. Some of the individuals who will be on hand for the event includes: Chief For- ward, Preston Cook, Hills- borough County Emergency Manager; Brian LaMarre, Meteorologist in Charge of NWS Tampa Bay Weather Forecast Office; Sgt. Jarrett Seal, Tampa Police SWAT/Search & Rescue with amphibious vehicle, Shawn Brown, Port Tampa Bay Op- erations Supervisor with mo- bile command post, and
others.
There will be vendors on
hand promoting safety items, educational displays, tips from the experts, safety demonstrations, and more.
After the Expo, residents can stay and play until 6 p.m., visiting Disasterville, Kids in Charge! 3D Printing: The fu- ture and the rest of MOSI’s exhibits.
There will be special ex- hibits focusing on the quan- tity of supplies needed for a family of 4 to be self-suffi- cient for at least 72 hours after a disaster has taken place.
It will provide kid-friendly entertainment, games and other activities.
For more information about the 2016 Tampa Bay Hurricane Expo visit www.TampaBayHurricane- Expo.com.
Gets 2 Years; Must Repay
$166,000 For Tax Fraud
A former Tampa Police employee was sentenced for her role in a tax fraud scam on Monday. She pleaded guilty to providing restricted personal information to a friend, who used the informa- tion to file fraudulent federal income tax returns.
U. S. District Judge Vir- ginia M. Hernandez Cov- ington sentenced Ms. Tonia Bright, 53, to 24 months in federal prison, fol- lowed by 3 years of supervi- sion after she is released. Ms. Bright was also ordered to repay $166,000 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Serv- ice.
Ms. Bright’s attorney had requested house arrest.
A spokesperson for the U. S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida said “the government had re- quested a guidelines sentence of 57 months (4 years, 9 months), based on the in- tended loss of over $600,000 caused by Ms. Bright and her co-conspirator Rita Gir- ven.
“The Court departed down to two years in federal prison in recognition of Ms. Bright’s work history and lack of criminal history,” the spokesperson said.
A veteran civilian employee of the Tampa Police Depart- ment for more than 30 years, Ms. Bright gathered infor- mation from citizens who had been a victim of a crime. As a result of her responsibilities,
TONIA BRIGHT
Ms. Bright had access to local, state, and federal law enforcement databases, in- cluding the National Crime Information Center comput- erized index.
In February 2016, Ms. Bright reached a plea agree- ment with federal prosecu- tors. She admitted to providing restricted, personal information to Ms. Girven. Ms. Girven then took the in- formation and filed fraudu- lent federal income tax returns.
Officials said the scam began in 2009 and continued until 2014.
Ms. Bright was initially suspended without pay from the police department. She was later allowed to resign.
Judge Covington noted that Ms. Bright received “very little financially,” (some clothes, food, and a designer purse from Ms. Girven), as part of the scheme.
Ms. Girven was sen- tenced to 12 years in federal prison in a separate case on November 20, 2015.
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