Digital Newspaper for Tifton, Ga., and the Greater Tiftarea

EX-TEACHER GETS 15 YEARS IN PRISON

AUTHORITIES FOUND CAMERAS FILMING NUDE KIDS IN BERRIEN COUNTY RENTAL HOME, SEIZED 750 IMAGES

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

A retired Lowndes County teacher was sentenced Wednesday to 15 years in prison for possessing 750 images of child sexual-abuse material after authorities found hidden cameras inside his Berrien County rental property’s bathroom filming young children bathing and undressing.

David Swanson, 61, was sentenced in U.S. District Court to serve 180 months in prison to be followed by 10 years of supervised release. He will have to register as a sex offender upon release from prison.

Swanson previously pleaded guilty to one count of possessing child pornography. He is not eligible for parole.

“Child predators caught secretly filming unsuspecting and innocent young children and possessing all manners of child sexual abuse material will face justice for these crimes,” said U.S. Attorney Peter D. Leary.

“The home should be a refuge for a family, particularly children. To violate that sanctuary is unforgivable, especially in such a reprehensible way,” said Jennifer Huerta, the acting special agent in charge of U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Atlanta that oversees Georgia and Alabama.

“Let this sentence serve as a reminder that HSI and its law enforcement partners are committed to investigating and holding offenders like Swanson accountable.”

According to court documents and statements, a concerned citizen notified Ray City Police on March 1, 2023, that she found a hidden camera in the home she rented from Swanson. The responding officer located a camera hidden in the bathroom’s ceiling plugged into an extension cord that ran through the attic.

The officer also found two more cameras hidden in electrical outlets in the same bathroom. The SD cards from the cameras contained images of four children between the ages of one to 12 changing clothes and using the toilet. There was also a video clip of Swanson stepping on the toilet, reaching toward the ceiling and then placing a small black object in his pocket.

The numerous videos depicting nude minor children bathing and using the toilet were all recorded between Jan. 21-Feb. 28, 2023.

A search warrant executed at Swanson’s Valdosta residence on March 3, 2023, uncovered approximately 750 images and videos of child sexual abuse material — child pornography — on his electronic devices, authorities said. Some of the material included children nude in bathrooms, as well as minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct, authorities said.

A review of Swanson’s laptop revealed evidence of downloading pre-teen hardcore and evidence of a file named “child porn” that had been downloaded to what appeared to be an external drive. When arrested, Swanson had recently retired as a teacher in the Lowndes County School System.

The investigation was conducted by the Berrien County Sheriff’s Office, Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office, Ray City Police Department, and U.S. Homeland Security Investigations.

TIFTON MAN JAILED IN MULTIPLE VEHICLE CRASHES

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

A Tifton man is in Tift County Jail charged with a long list of violations stemming from multiple vehicle wrecks and injuries after he attempted to drive away from police Wednesday during a traffic stop.

Brett Ashley Moser, 43, is charged with two felonies – fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer and serious injury by vehicle – and multiple misdemeanors: DUI-driving under the influence of drugs, driving while license is suspended or revoked, failure to obey traffic control device, failure to stop at sign, reckless driving, willful obstruction of law enforcement officers, speeding, possession of less than an ounce of marijuana, unlawful use of a wireless device, and safety restraint violation, according to a Tift County Jail booking report.

On Wednesday, the Georgia State Patrol said they stopped a Toyota Camry at Third Street and Magnolia Drive near Adcock Pecan when they noticed the driver using a cell phone and driving without a seatbelt.

As they began questioning the driver, troopers said they smelled alcohol and marijuana. The driver then sped away, driving recklessly and making several turns. Troopers said the man ran a stoplight at Magnolia Drive and Second Street, striking another vehicle, injuring five people including four children. The collision caused two other vehicles to crash, authorities said, causing more injuries.

The Toyota Camry driver also sustained minor injuries.

GA FARMER OF YEAR

A PROPONENT OF

TIFT BAHIA GRASSES

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

Bruce A. Redmond, Georgia's 2024 Farmer of the Year, is one of only three certified growers of TifQuik bahia grass seed in the world.

Redmond's family-owned Shiloh Farms in Springfield near Savannah is the largest producer of certified grass bahia seed in the Southeast. Shiloh Farms began growing certified Tifton 9 bahia grass seed in the late 1990s. In 2005, the farm was chosen by the Georgia Seed Development Commission to produce the first large-scale TifQuik foundation seed plot in Georgia.

TifQuik bahia grass was developed at the University of Georgia Agricultural Coastal Plain Experiment Station in Tifton by UGA's Dr. Wayne Hanna in conjunction with Drs. Bill Anderson and Roger Gates of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service.

Released in 2006, TifQuik is a bahia grass variety that is protected under the Plant Variety Protection Act, which means it can only be sold as a class of certified seed and only by individuals licensed by Georgia's Integrated Cultivar Release System under guidelines established in conjunction with the University of Georgia Research Foundation.

TifQuik is a variant of Tifton 9 and is said to have significantly faster germination times, lower nutrient and water requirements, and a higher yield than earlier varieties of bahia grass. Those qualities make it ideal for a sod-based rotation system with row crops like peanuts and cotton.

“TifQuik is the most profitable component of my operation and a huge contributor to the yearly profit margin," Redmond has said. "It’s like an on-farm insurance policy in case something goes wrong with the cotton or peanut crop.”

Redmond's third-generation farm operation consists of 2,800 owned and rented acres and produces bahia grass, TifQuik bahia grass, dry and irrigated cotton, and dry and irrigated peanuts.

As UGA Extension's Georgia Farmer of the Year, Redmond competes for the title of the Sunbelt Ag Expo's Southeastern Farmer of the Year along with farmers of the year from Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia.

The Sunbelt Ag Expo will announce the regional farmer of the year during October's Expo in Moultrie.

Redmond was named “Conservationist of the Year in Soil and Water” in 2021, and received the Georgia Outstanding Young Farmer Award in 2012. He spent 19 years as a member of the National Federation of Independent Business. He has been a member of the Ogeechee River Soil and Water Conservation District for 20 years, received the Friend of 4-H award, has served on his local USDA Farm Service Agency committee, and has been a member of the Georgia Agribusiness Council.

Aiden Souter of Worth County receives the Ladder Leaper award from Tennis Coach Mike Brumby in photo at left, and McKenna Graham of Fitzgerald gets the Sportsmanship trophy from coaches Moppy and Mike Brumby.

BRUMBY TENNIS ENDS SUMMER WITH AWARDS

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

Brumby Tennis Fridays at ABAC recently ended its 34th consecutive summer with a total attendance of 260.

Participants in the summer tennis camp came from 15 Georgia counties, including the cities of Atlanta and Athens, as well as two players from New Jersey and three from Missouri.   

Trophies were awarded in six singles and six doubles divisions. As always, the largest two trophies were for "Ladder Leaper," the player who moves the most places up the 120-position ladder during six weeks, and "Sportsmanship," nominated by and voted on by the other players.

Aiden Souter, a rising sophomore in Worth County moved up 47 places on the ladder to become the summer's "Ladder Leader."

McKenna Graham of Fitzgerald, a rising ninth-grader, was voted to receive the Sportsmanship trophy.

NEW SOUTHWELL TEST HELPS PREDICT RISK OF ESOPHAGEAL CANCER

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

A new TissueCypher laboratory test at Southwell can help predict the risk of progression to esophageal cancer for people diagnosed with Barrett’s esophagus (BE), says the health system.

BE is the only known precursor to esophageal adenocarcinoma, one of the fastest increasing cancers in the United States. Like most cancers, it is best treated through early detection. Southwell said TissueCypher is the first AI-driven precision medicine test to determine a patient’s individual risk of progression from BE to cancer. 

“The TissueCypher test is for patients with recently diagnosed BE or those enrolled in a BE surveillance program,” said Dr. Jessica Beier, who serves as Southwell's system laboratory medical director and chief quality officer. “The test can be performed on tissue diagnosed by the pathologist with samples obtained through standard esophageal biopsies collected during endoscopy.”

Beier said people suffering from chronic acid reflux or who have a family history of BE or esophageal cancer should consider being screened for BE.

MOBILE LIBRARY COMING TO OMEGA CITY HALL

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

"Library Everywhere" is adding a stop at Omega City Hall. Omega area residents wishing to use the mobile library’s services may attend the kick-off visit from 3-4 p.m. Aug. 7.

After that, Library Everywhere will be at Omega City Hall from 3-4 p.m every first and third Wednesday.

Library Everywhere is a mobile branch of the Coastal Plain Regional Library System, serving Ben Hill, Berrien, Cook, Irwin, Tift, and Turner counties.

“Library Everywhere is a valuable resource that allows us to extend services beyond our reach. The Tifton Library looks forward to partnering with Library Everywhere to boost its resources,” said Karen Thompson, branch manager of the Tifton-Tift County Public Library.

In addition to the new site in Omega, Library Everywhere also visits Ty Ty City Hall from 9:30-11:30 a.m. every first & third Thursday. Library card registration and free wireless Internet are available at every visit. Library materials such as Chromebooks, launchpads, passes, books, and DVDs are available for checkout; copying, printing, notarization, and computers for public use will also be available.

A library card is needed to check out materials but is not needed to use any of the other free services.

For information, contact Allison Young, outreach services coordinator, at 229-402-9115 or outreach@cprl.org

BOY SCOUT TROOP 62

IN TIFTON RECEIVES

HONOR RECOGNITION

Tifton Grapevine Staff Reports

Boy Scout Troop 62 in Tifton was recognized as an "Honor Troop" at a recent weeklong gathering at Camp Sydney Dew outside Rome in Northwest Georgia.

Several members of the Tifton troop, along with some adult leaders, were in attendance. Pictured is Troop 62 Scoutmaster Ben Bennett and Senior Patrol Leader Gabriel Milton with their award ribbon.

To Subscribe, Click Here!

Your free subscription allows you to receive our MidWeek and Weekender editions in your in-box, along with occasional Sponsored Editions.

Your subscription is free because of the support of local advertisers.

Please support the businesses and organizations who make this possible.

To Contact Us, Call 478-227-7126

Statewide influenza data released from the 

Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) as of week ending July 20:

Since Seasonal Tracking Beginning Oct. 23, 2023:

TOTAL INFLUENZA OUTBREAKS: 199 ............................................... LATEST WEEK: 0

TOTAL METRO AREA HOSPITALIZATIONS: 4,424 ..............................LATEST WEEK: 4

TOTAL INFLUENZA-ASSOCIATED DEATHS: 59 ................................. LATEST WEEK: 0

In Georgia, influenza is not a reportable condition, with the exception of influenza-associated deaths and outbreaks.

YOUR GUIDE

TO ACTIVITIES

THIS WEEKEND

IN THE GREATER TIFTAREA

Saturday, Aug. 3, is National Watermelon Day. Watermelons are Georgia's No. 1 produce crop with more than 40,000 acres in production, according to the Ga. Department of Agriculture. Cordele, the seat of Crisp County, is known as the "Watermelon Capital of the World." Farmers in the county ship more than 200 million pounds of watermelons to markets around the nation. Crisp County is Georgia's top watermelon-growing county and is the No. 4 watermelon-growing county in the United States.

FRIDAY, AUG. 2

• First Friday Concert, food trucks, beverages, vendors, live music by Yankee Slickers, Evan Barber & the Dead Gamblers, 6 p.m., Fulwood Park, Tifton
• Tiftarea Academy football Blue-Gold scrimmage, 7 p.m., Panther Pit, Chula

SATURDAY, AUG. 3

• Run For Love 5K/1-Mile Run, supporting Tift County Cross Country Teams, 8 a.m., ABAC Tennis Complex, Tifton
• Hometown Pride: Back 2 School Bash, 9 a.m.-2 p.m., Downtown Adel
• "From King to Country," Jordan Poole in concert, 7 p.m., Tift Theatre for the Performing Arts, Downtown Tifton

YARD SALE

THIS WEEKEND

Saturday, Aug. 3, 8 a.m.-noon Yard Sale at Automated Self Storage front parking lot, 1652 Carpenter Road South, across from the YMCA. Lots of gently worn women’s boutique clothing and shoes. Also home decor and other household items.

___________________________________

To Advertise Your Yard Sale, Contact:

IHeardIt@tiftongrapevine.com 

or 478-227-7126

Fees are $1 per word, paid in advance

"Azura" has a magnetic personality that will win over your heart. Come meet this enchanting canine and other pets available for adoption at the Tift County Animal Shelter on Highway 125 South, open between 1-6 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. For additional information, call 229-382-PETS (7387).