The worker who was freed from a construction accident Tuesday, May 21, in Buford was at the home of an Atlanta Falcons player, according to a media report. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that the home in the 3600 block of Camp Branch Road is owned by Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones. In a news release, Gwinnett Fire officials said the man was pinned by a heavy piece of concrete and was below grade in a ditch. He was pushed by dirt and heavy concrete against the foundation wall of the house. Firefighters believed the victim was positioned face down, with most of his waist and lower…

A Winder man recently assumed the identity of his wife's boyfriend in an attempt to prove his wife wanted him dead. The husband contacted the Barrow County Sheriff's Office on May 12 to present the results of his scheme. According to the incident report, the husband showed the deputy numerous text messages between his wife and "Don Juan," the wife's boyfriend. Don Juan, the husband explained, was the identity he assumed to entrap his wife.  The husband allowed the deputy to read the text exchange he had carried out with his wife while pretending to be his wife's boyfriend. The text messages …

A Winder woman, who reportedly told police she hated the father of her unborn child and would call 911 whenever she saw him, ended up being the object of a 911 call herself after allegedly running naked through her backyard with a knife. Winder Police were called to a Capital Avenue address on May 8 after a 911 caller reported seeing Jessica Nichole Daniel, 27, outside in a state of undress. Daniel, according to a witness, was unclothed in an area visible to children on a nearby playground. Upon arrival, the officer heard a female yelling "very loudly" from the back of the residence. The …

Gwinnett Police have identified the person who was shot dead Monday, May 13, in an officer-involved shooting as Rodney Pike, 38, of Buford. According to a police news release, Pike had warrants out of Forsyth County. The incident arose when police responded to a "wanted person located" call at 5307 Pass Court address in Buford about 3:39 p.m. Monday, police said. The caller also advised that Pike was a drug user and would run from police. According to the Gwinnett Police news release: Several officers arrived on scene at 3:58 PM.  Upon sight of the officers, Pike fled on foot and entered a …

A dispute over a 1997 Pontiac Grand Am reportedly led to threats and the eventual arrest of a 23-year-old Statham woman on a slew of charges. A Barrow County Sheriff's deputy was dispatched to a Thurmond Circle address on May 6 after a Statham woman accused Erin Patrice Thomas, 23, also of Statham, of threatening to blow up the Grand Am. According to the arrest report, Thomas reportedly felt she should have the car due to an earlier agreement, but the Statham woman did not want to release the vehicle without first receiving payment. The two women argued and Thomas left on foot. The Statham …

A lack of communication between a woman and her daughter-in-law led to an armed encounter with Barrow County Sheriff's deputies at a Bethlehem home on May 1. The woman, who thought she was home alone, heard someone upstairs and called authorities to report a burglary in progress. The first deputy to arrive at the scene was in plain clothes, wearing a red shirt and camouflage pants with his badge displayed on his belt. That information was relayed to the woman, who stayed on the line with 911 until a uniformed deputy arrived at the Saddle Ridge Drive home. The woman told the uniformed deputy …

After spending about five hours shooting their new video, "Round Here," Tyler Hubbard, of Monroe, and Brian Kelley, the other half of county-music duo Florida Georgia Line, were given the key to the city by Monroe Mayor Greg Thompson. The award-winning country duo then dined with the mayor before heading to a farm off Pannell Road to finish up the shoot. Passing traffic was treated to the musicians performing in the middle of Broad Street as crowds gathered on the side of the road to take photographs. Buckles store also became part of the set. Hubbard, Kelley and a crowd of local Monroe …

A Lawrenceville man attracted some unwanted attention when he reportedly sped past a Gwinnett County police cruiser on April 18. The officer, who was on the way to GCPD's North Precinct for roll call, estimated Neko Brown, 32, was driving approximately 60 mph in a 45 mph zone on Buford Drive. Brown's vehicle, a silver Honda Accord, also had an inoperative center brake light. "I turned on my blue lights as the vehicle passed Mall of Georgia Boulevard," the officer wrote in the report. "I noticed the driver, Brown, started quickly trying to stuff something down by the center console." Upon …

A Buford partygoer told Gwinnett Police she waited approximately an hour before leaving a party because she "was too intoxicated to drive and wanted to sober up." The one-hour wait, however, was not quite long enough. Ashley Clower, 23, of Lawrenceville, Ga., was pulled over at 1:36 a.m. on April 13 near the intersection of Buford Drive and South Lee Street after a GCPD officer observed her speeding, failing to stop at a stop sign and failing to obey a traffic control device. Clower allegedly admitted drinking and informed the officer she had consumed approximately five beers during a game of…

Despite being founded during a time when U.S. manufacturing was shrinking, Buford-based Okabashi has proved to be a "success story," according to a recent CNN Money report. The company, started in 1984, employs a U.S. workforce, automation and recycling methods to compete in a global marketplace. "At Okabashi, we've had the vision and the dream of not only making the most comfortable shoes anyone makes, but we've also had the dream of being green and being good for the society and the environment that we live in," Okabashi CEO Bahman Irvani told CNN Money. Watch the video report here. You …

A Buford woman is facing two counts of child molestation after allegedly climbing into bed with two young girls and simulating an act of sexual intercourse. Gwinnett County Police were called to a Buford home on April 21 after the mother of the two young girls learned of the incident. According to the police report, the woman, identified as Jessica Head, 25, had been to a nightclub with a male resident of the home. The male said both he and Head had consumed alcohol and returned home around 3:30 a.m. The male said he went to bed and left Head sleeping on the sofa. At some point during the …

On April 13 and April 15, several Mall of Georgia visitors became the most recent victims of a thief or thieves using the lock punch or pry method to break into cars. On April 13, a Monroe man returned to his 2006 Ford F-150 to discover his Sony touchscreen bluetooth stereo head unit valued at $600 had been stolen. The investigating officer discovered a small deformity on the underside of the driver's door handle and a small scrape in the paint indicating the handle had been pried up far enough for the thief to access the locking mechanism. On the afternoon of April 15, a Snellville man …

This past weekend, Barrow County Emergency Services personnel at Station 6 met with a distraught resident.  “She stated her dog had run under her house and had gotten tangled up in some electrical wires,” Lieutenant Ernest Weant said in a news release. “Frustrated and not knowing what else to do to get her dog out she came to the firehouse and asked for help. We offered to go see what we could do to help.” When Weant, Lieutenant James Key, Firefighter Josh Shelby and Firefighter Teddy Brown arrived at the resident's home, they found a scared puppy unable to free himself from an entanglement…

A teenage girl says despite her pleas to stop, her boyfriend forced her to have sex at a friend's Buford home. Police were called to Gwinnett Medical Center on April 13 to interview the teen. The girl told police she and her boyfriend were at a friend's house in Buford when her boyfriend asked her to have sex with him.  "[The teen] told me she did not want to have sex with [the suspect], but felt like she had to because he was her boyfriend," the officer wrote in the incident report. While the two were engaged in sexual relations, the teen told her boyfriend she wanted to stop. According to …

A Golden Corral manager says a cashier in training was tricked into handing over $400 to a male customer during an April 5 incident at the Buford Drive restaurant. The video surevillance of the incident shows black male -- approximately 6-foot-2 weighing 185 pounds and wearing a striped sweater, dark pants and a black Yankees baseball cap -- order and pay for his food. The male then handed the cashier an unknown amount of money. The cashier is seen on video making change for the bill she was handed. According to the Gwinnett County Police report, the male then repeatedly placed "unknown …

A family of eight — two adults and six children — was displaced following an evening house fire Thursday in Bethlehem.  “Upon arrival of firefighters, heavy fire was found across the roofline and attic of the structure,” Lieutenant Scott Dakin, public information officer, said in a news release. “Firefighters quickly started a defensive attack to bring the fire under control utilizing the ladder truck.” Firefighters worked to bring the fire under control from a defensive position. Once the fire was brought under control, crews made an interior attack to extinguish the flames. Due to the …

By Rebecca Cameron Gainesville, Ga. - In an effort to further support Tripp Halstead, the toddler who was critically injured last October when a large tree branch fell and struck him, WDUN AM550/FM102.9 has organized a fundraising event to be held Saturday, April 20. On that day, Greg Cochran, owner of OLDSKL Fitness and world-record holder, will be at Road Atlanta on the second morning of their GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series and Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge, pulling two all-new Nissan Pathfinders from Carriage Automotive Group to raise money for Tripp. Cochran is no stranger to …

Fort Yargo's fourth annual 18th Century Market Faire, a living history event, will be held this weekend.  The event is hosted by the Fort Yargo Living History Society. Area residents can visit the park's historic fort, where historians will demonstrate life in 1790s frontier Georgia. The event will include demonstrations of trades, frontier camps, Native American warriors, militia drills, children's activities, a trading post, weapons, 18th century music and more. Event guests can also enjoy frontier frybread and kettlecorn. Click here to view details on the event, including times and the …

A Buford family has been displaced from their Gravel Springs Road home after an April 3 fire caused extensive damage to the residence. Firefighters were dispatched to the house in the 2400 block of Gravel Springs Road at 1:12 p.m. A resident called 911 to report the house was filling with smoke. The residents safely evacuated the house prior to the arrival of firefighters. Upon arrival, fire crews found smoke showing from the house. "Crews quickly recognized that they had a working fire at the residence with heavy smoke coming out of the eaves," stated Gwinnett County Fire and Emergency …

A Buford woman hid in an upstairs room and waited for police to arrive after hearing an intruder in her Springlake Drive home during a March 27 incident. The woman called 911 at approximately 11:30 a.m. after hearing someone walking around in the basement. She then hid in an upstairs office and stayed on the phone with police dispatch until officers arrived. Police and K-9 officers entered the residence to apprehend the intruder. An officer staged outside heard a noise in the garage and alerted the other officers. The intruder, later identified as Michael Wayne Morgan, 22, of Buford, was …