Escambia Sheriff On I-10 Plane Landing, Jury Duty Scam, Accidental Shooting and More

Escambia County, FL (NewsRadio 92.3) -- Escambia County Sheriff Chip Simmons joined Pensacola Morning News Monday in studio with a packed update — leading with a firsthand account of Sunday's emergency plane landing on Interstate 10 and moving through a sophisticated phone scam, an accidental shooting, and his newly elected position on the Florida Sheriffs Association Board of Directors.

Plane Lands on I-10 — Simmons Was on Scene

A small plane made an emergency landing on Interstate 10 Sunday after the pilot declared she could not make it to the airport due to a burning oil smell in the cockpit. Simmons was among the first responders on scene and says the result was nothing short of remarkable. The pilot — who was training a student at the time — flew under a highway gantry sign at high speed and set the aircraft down on the interstate while traffic was moving. Not a single vehicle crash was reported. Simmons says he spoke to Eric — the truck driver whose dashcam captured the viral video — who told him the plane came up on him very quickly. Simmons says he joked that she almost landed in the back of his truck. He credited the pilot for exceptional airmanship, the truck driver for slowing down and activating his hazards, and the motoring public for not panicking. He says he cannot imagine a mercy landing on an interstate getting cleared faster than that one. Deputies pushed the plane to the shoulder and had both lanes open in short order.

Jury Duty Scam — $105,000 Gone

A Santa Rosa County resident lost $105,000 to a phone scam after receiving a call from someone claiming to be the Santa Rosa County Clerk of Courts — telling the victim they had missed jury duty. The scammers kept the victim on the phone for hours — with what Simmons believes was more than one person involved — before convincing them to withdraw $105,000 in cash from a bank and hand it to someone who arrived by Uber at a Home Depot parking lot. The suspect drove away with the money. Investigators used surveillance video from the parking lot and license plate reader data to identify the suspect — who was arrested with assistance from an FBI task force in Atlanta. Simmons says the scam worked because the callers spoofed the official Santa Rosa County Clerk of Courts phone number and used publicly available information about the victim to sound legitimate. His warning is simple — no government agency will ever call you and ask you to withdraw cash.

Accidental Shooting — Culpable Negligence Possible

Two young people in their late teens or early twenties were dancing and tossing a loaded handgun back and forth when it fired — striking the person who had thrown it. Simmons says there is no evidence of intentional foul play but says the investigation remains open and investigators are examining culpable negligence — whether the individuals should have known their actions were reckless and could cause serious harm. He says charges are possible even without intent.

Florida Sheriffs Association Property Tax Statement

The Florida Sheriffs Association has released an educational statement on the property tax constitutional amendment heading to November's ballot — stopping short of telling sheriffs how to vote but expressing concern about the erosion of home rule and the potential for Tallahassee to gain control over local budgets. Simmons says he is personally not a fan of property taxes and actually supports tax reform — but calls the amendment a swing and a miss because it only partially addresses property taxes rather than eliminating them entirely. He says if property tax is bad it should all be bad.

Simmons Elected to Florida Sheriffs Association Board

Simmons was elected to the Florida Sheriffs Association Board of Directors — representing District 1 which covers the entire Florida panhandle. He says it is a genuine honor and will mean a few more trips to Tallahassee for advocacy work on behalf of Florida's 67 sheriffs. The board advocates for tougher sentencing statutes, protects the constitutional office of the sheriff, and represents member agencies at the state level.