Best friends die in Florida after sand hole traps them underground: Sheriff
Stock image of police lights. Douglas Sacha/Getty Images
(INVERNESS, Fla.) — Two teenagers, whose relatives said were best friends, have died after a sand hole they were digging at a Florida park collapsed and buried them for more than an hour, authorities said.
The incident occurred at Sportsman Park in Inverness, Florida, according to the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office.
“Our hearts are with both families as they grieve the tremendous loss of their sons. We hope the community will continue to respect their privacy and unite in remembering and celebrating both boys,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement.
The two 14-year-olds were identified on Wednesday as George Watts and Derrick Hubbard, the Florida District 8 and District 5 Medical Examiners’ offices told ABC News.
The boys were playing in the park on Sunday when a five-foot-deep sand hole they were digging collapsed, trapping them, according to the sheriff’s office.
The sheriff’s office said the emergency was reported about 12:44 p.m. local time.
“The caller reported that two 14-year-old children were lost in the park, and there was a large hole; the caller thought the children were trapped inside the hole,” the sheriff’s office said.
Deputies, firefighters and emergency medical services personnel raced to the park and attempted to rescue the boys after one of their parents pinged their child’s cellphone and pinpointed their whereabouts underground, according to the sheriff’s office.
Rescuers pulled both boys from the sand hole around 1:15 p.m. and began cardiopulmonary resuscitation. They were taken by ambulance to HCA Florida Citrus Hospital in Inverness.
One of the boys, Derrick Hubbard, was pronounced dead on Sunday, authorities said. The sheriff’s office said George Watts was pronounced dead at the hospital on Tuesday afternoon.
“In a tragic accident, we lost our oldest son, George Watts, and his best friend, Derrick Hubbard,” Watts’ mother, Jasmine Watts, wrote on a GoFundMe page set up to raise money to cover the boys’ funeral expenses. “These two boys shared a bond that went beyond friendship — they were inseparable, full of life, curiosity, and dreams for the future.”
The boys were students at Inverness Middle School, the school said in a statement.
“This situation has deeply affected many within our school and district community,” the school said in a statement, adding that counselors, social workers and psychologists were made available to students this week “as we navigate this difficult time together.”
Zoe Rosenberg speaks at the Sonoma County Superior Court in Santa Rosa, Calif., December 3, 2025. Gabrielle Lurie/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images
(SONOMA COUNTY, Calif.) — An animal rights activist who stole four chickens from a Petaluma Poultry slaughterhouse in California will have to serve jail time.
Rosenberg was convicted in November of felony conspiracy and three misdemeanors arising from a “coordinated” incursion at the poultry facility in 2023 during which she and other members of the animal rights organization Direct Action Everywhere (DxE) “unlawfully” entered the facility, removed live chickens, stole business records and interfered with commercial operations, according to prosecutors.
“Evidence at trial established that Rosenberg and individuals associated with her coordinated a series of unlawful entries into Petaluma Poultry over the course of two months in 2023,” the DA’s statement read.
“They involved disguises, nighttime breaches through a cut fence, covert movement through secured areas, photographing and stealing internal business records, and placing tracking devices on all twelve Petaluma Poultry transport trailers,” the press release added.
Zoe Rosenberg told ABC News that she was worried about getting appropriate medical care while incarcerated.
“I’m scared that in jail I won’t have access to the specific medical equipment and care I need, but even the possibility of dying in custody is less scary than the thought of ever giving up on the animals who desperately need help. I will never stop fighting for their rights and safety,” she said in a statement from DxE.
“I am filled with remorse for every animal I have failed to save,” Rosenberg said.
In a social media video, Rosenberg said she had to turn herself into authorities Dec. 10 and may have to pay a restitution fee.
“The judge is also ordering that I pay over 100,000 dollars in restitution, but we will have a hearing to debate that further,” she said on a TikTok video.
Andrea Staub, a spokesperson for Petaluma Poultry, told ABC News that the judge’s ruling affirms the rule of law.
“This decision underscores the seriousness of Direct Action Everywhere’s actions and upholds the rule of law. It affirms a basic truth: when you break the law, you’ll be held responsible,” Staub said.
“Dxe’s actions show a reckless disregard for employee safety, animal welfare, and food security. At Petaluma Poultry, we are committed to responsible farming, rigorous animal care and biosecurity standards, and delivering the safe, healthy food our consumers and customers rely on,” she added.
According to her X account, Rosenberg has participated in many protests for animal rights that include chaining herself to an NBA basketball hoop at a playoff game in 2022, dressing up as a Chick-fil-A employee to warn customers about animal rights at one location, and leading a satire “dog BBQ” at the University of California, Berkeley, where she pretended to make dog meat and threatened to cook a chihuahua.
In an archival TEDx Talk, Rosenberg said that social causes must be progressed with public acts of protest.
“Whatever cause is important to you, isn’t going to progress or win without non-violent, consistent, and bold acts of protest,” she said.
Rosenberg named the stolen chickens Poppy, Ivy, Aster and Azalea, according to her social media.
The entrance to a U.S. Immigration and Customs (ICE) detention facility is seen following a shooting, on September 25, 2025 in Dallas, Texas. Brandon Bell/Getty Images
(ARLINGTON, Texas) — A family in Arlington, Texas, grieved as they laid 30-year-old Wael Tarabishi to rest. His father, Maher Tarabishi, however, was not at the funeral. Instead, he was at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center nearly three hours away in Anson, Texas.
Wael faced a long battle with Advanced Pompe Disease, causing him to be severely disabled. Maher was by his side through it all, and has been described as his son’s arms, legs and lungs because of how involved and essential he was in his life.
Maher, a Jordanian native, overstayed a tourist visa here in the U.S. in 1994, his family and advocates said via @freemahertrabishi on Instagram account. The U.S. government allowed Maher to remain in the country legally to care for Wael through a Supervision Order in 2008, according to the account.
Maher presented himself at the Dallas field office to fulfill conditions of the Supervision Order last year for his annual check-in appointment, but found the building under temporary closure, the account noted. In an act of good will, the account said, Maher visited the office again once it re-opened.
Despite maintaining lawful status and carrying valid documentation of Wael’s condition, officers placed Maher in handcuffs and was told to “shut up and sit down” as he pleaded with them, according to the account.
After Maher was detained by ICE in October 2025, his family and advocates rallied to reunite the father and son. They said Wael, a U.S. citizen, would die without Maher’s care. Three months later, he did.
After Wael’s death on Jan. 23, heartbroken family and supporters desperately tried to get ICE to allow Maher to attend his son’s funeral on Thursday. Late Tuesday night, ICE gave final word that Maher would be denied permission.
“America speaks of freedom and family values yet it stole Maher from his dying son,” Shahd Arnaout, Maher’s daughter-in-law, posted on her Instagram today. “A funeral without Maher!!!!! This is a human rights crime.”
In a statement to ABC News, ICE accused Maher of being part of an organization the U.S. deems a terrorist group.
“Maher Mohd Tarabishi, 62, a criminal alien and self-admitted member of the Palestine Liberation Organization — a murderous foreign terrorist organization that has carried out countless terrorist attacks and plane hijackings, was arrested by ICE officers Oct. 28 in Dallas, Texas. Shockingly, Tarabishi has been permitted to remain in the U.S. illegally for nearly two decades despite being ordered removed from the U.S. by both an immigration judge and the Board of Immigration Appeals,” the agency said.
According to ICE, the Obama administration proactively filed a joint motion to dismiss the immigration case against Tarabishi in 2011, “despite the fact that he had admitted to being a member of a foreign terrorist organization” and had been ordered removed. The agency said its arrest of Tarabishi “shows clear evidence of the game-changing impact the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement efforts are having.”
Shahd, a consistent voice for her family, vehemently denied these claims in an interview with ABC News’ Rhiannon Ally last week.
“We denied that he’s part of PLO or any other part of organization. And we did, his lawyer did,” she said. “He went to the Dallas Field Immigration Center and he spoke to an ICE agent and they respond with the no. He requested to go and at least to say goodbye and to the funeral and both answer was no. So why are they doing that?”
Ali Elhorr, attorney for Maher Tarbishi at Aspire Immigration Law, PLLC, said in a press release that he was profoundly disappointed in the decision and shared details of the process.
“We were in communication with multiple ICE officers who had shown the willingness to facilitate Maher’s supervised release to attend Wael’s burial … Initial steps in the process had already begun when I received a call from the ICE officer with whom I had been in contact,” he said. “The officer informed me that his director stepped in and told him that Maher would not be allowed to attend Wael’s burial. This was the final decision.”
Heartbroken, Shahd explained that Wael’s final wishes were to be with his father.
“We were trying so hard to let him out, to let Maher out, at least to say goodbye to Wael before he died. Because that’s what Wael’s wish was, ‘To say good-bye to my dad. At least let me see him one more time. At least, let me just maybe touch his hand before I die … ‘ ” he said. “Wael is a U.S. citizen And he asked for his dad, it was very simple ask for him. He trusted his country and he trusted the system. But they failed.”
Shahd described Wael as “an angel” and “an amazing person.”
“With everything Wael went through and all the hardship that he had, he always cared about his family. He always made us laugh,” she said. “Him and his father, it wasn’t just a normal relationship between any father and a son. No, he was his best friend. He was his caregiver. He was dad. He was everything for him.”
She said that she and many supporters believe ICE is directly responsible for Wael’s tragic death.
“ICE is responsible of the death of Wael Tarabishi. They may not kill him with a bullet, but they killed him inside.”
In her Instagram post last week, Shahd promised not to forget Wael.
“Me and the girls will miss you every single day. You will always live in our hearts. I will keep speaking your name, I will keep sharing your story, and I will keep every promise I made. I won’t stop until your dad is out and our family gets the justice and peace you deserved.”
(SEATTLE) — Police in Seattle have arrested a 21-year-old man armed with a shotgun, pistol, and carrying multiple rounds of ammunition near the Space Needle during Seattle’s New Year’s Eve celebration, authorities said.
On New Year’s Eve at approximately 7:20 p.m., patrol officers in Seattle responded to reports of a man sitting on a bench near the Pacific Science Center holding a partially concealed shotgun, according to a statement from the Seattle Police Department.
“Witnesses saw him holding the gun by the grip, causing alarm, while facing the area where spectators were gathering for the fireworks display,” police said. “The suspect, wearing all black clothing and a red hat with “WAR” written on it, cooperated with police.”
Officers safely recovered the shotgun and the suspect, who was also armed with a handgun, had a valid concealed carry permit, police said.
Police assigned to the event center arrested the man without incident, authorities said.
Seattle Police Department’s arson bomb squad were able to locate the suspect’s vehicle and swept the car for potential weapons or explosives, though none were found and it was determined the vehicle did not pose a threat, officials confirmed.
Police subsequently booked the suspect into the King County Jail for unlawful use of weapons and detectives reviewing the case referred criminal charges to the City Attorney’s Office, authorities said.
The investigation into the incident is currently ongoing.
