Month: February 2026

By WTVR CBS 6 Web Staff

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    RICHMOND, Virginia (WTVR) — A Richmond woman was sentenced Wednesday to three years in federal prison for wire fraud after prosecutors said she embezzled hundreds of thousands of dollars meant to house homeless women and children. Instead, she spent the money on tattoos, airline tickets, and a luxury Caribbean ferry ride.

Kia A. Player, 41, the former director of RVA Sister’s Keeper, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge John Gibney following her November 2025 guilty plea. Her scheme caused $199,163 in actual losses to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the City of Richmond, according to court documents.

RVA Sister’s Keeper received more than $995,000 in combined federal and city funding to operate an inclement weather shelter for homeless women and children in the Richmond metropolitan area during 2022 and 2023.

Between August 2022 and April 2023, prosecutors say Player fabricated and falsified at least 35 separate invoices for services that were never fully, or in some cases ever, provided, according to the documents.

Among the most notable: Player submitted at least 21 inflated invoices totaling roughly $170,000 to a company called “VCM Catering Services,” which prosecutors called “entirely fictitious.”

They said in reality, Player paid a family member, who was a Richmond Public Schools cafeteria manager, approximately $4,000 a month to provide meals to shelter residents. Some of that food was taken from the school’s cafeteria and had already been purchased with public funds. In some cases, the food was expired.

Player also fabricated a roof repair invoice and pocketed the reimbursement money from the city even as the shelter’s roof continued to leak. She faked invoices for laundry services that were only partially rendered, with residents sometimes receiving used blankets, and submitted invoices for bed bug treatments that were never performed at all.

Meanwhile, prosecutors said roughly 40 homeless residents shared one shower and two bathrooms, none of which were ever upgraded despite claims otherwise.

Court documents show Player funneled at least $68,000 into her own business and personal bank accounts and spent the money on personal expenses, including a tattoo, airline tickets, furniture, shopping at an antiques store, and a luxury Caribbean ferry ride in Miami Beach.

As CBS 6 previously reported, public records showed Player had a documented history of financial difficulties before the City of Richmond awarded her organization nearly $1 million. Prior to submitting her funding application, records showed a federal tax lien, a state tax lien, and a civil judgment in Hanover County had all been issued against her.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia filed criminal charges against Player in October 2025. She pleaded guilty in November, admitting guilt and waiving her right to a trial. The maximum penalty for wire fraud is 20 years in prison. The case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Washington Division and the HUD Office of Inspector General.

This story was initially reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. WTVR verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Robb Coles

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    GALLATIN, Tennessee (WTVF) — A cancer patient in Gallatin is using watercolor paintings to bring comfort to nurses, patients, and the hospital chapel, a powerful reminder of the impact one person can have.

Steve Wheeler was undergoing cancer treatment when a small sketchbook and a set of watercolor paints brought some comfort, not just for him, but for the patients and nurses around him.

In August 2023, Wheeler’s wife, Cindy, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

Just two months later, he received his own cancer diagnosis.

“August of 2023, my wife Cindy was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and ironically, in October of that year, I was diagnosed with cancer,” said Steve Wheeler.

While both were in treatment at Highpoint Health with Ascension St. Thomas in Gallatin, Wheeler was looking for a way to pass the time during radiation and chemotherapy visits.

“One of our good friends gave me a little sketchbook and a small thing of watercolor paints, and said, take these up there and do that,” Wheeler said.

Wheeler has been an artist for years, and even has some of his works on display in galleries.

However, soon these paintings done in the hospital began to pile up — and he decided to start giving them away.

“I actually gave a couple of them to some of the nurses that were really good with us, and helped us a bunch,” Wheeler said.

He began giving paintings to patients going through tough times as well.

“Tears sometimes, on both our parts probably,” Wheeler said.

The hospital’s chaplain, James Chapman, took notice after spotting Wheeler at work one day.

“Steve was sitting next to his wife and on a little tray table, he was painting,” Chapman said.

Wheeler had been adding a Bible verse to the bottom of each painting — scripture his oncologist had shared with him.

“Our oncologist gave me a list of scriptures that related to healing,” Wheeler said.

So, Chapman began passing the paintings along to patients he visited, too.

“A lot of joy that comes from receiving that, on the side of the patients or the family,” Chapman said.

The response inspired Chapman to think bigger.

The walls of the hospital’s chapel were a bit bare, and he asked Wheeler if he would be willing to create art that would remain there permanently.

“I found some scripture passages that tied along with the seasons and the seasons of life that we go through,” Chapman said.

Four of Wheeler’s paintings, paired with scripture passages, now hang in the chapel.

They depict a church in four different seasons and four different times of the day.

Wheeler said he is sharing his story in hopes of inspiring others to do the same.

“I’d love to inspire some other artists and craftsmen, artisans and people that that can do stuff like that,” Wheeler said.

Wheeler said his cancer battle is over, but his wife is still in the fight.

He is continuing to paint watercolors to give out to people receiving medical care at the hospital.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. WTVF verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Hannah McDonald

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    BRENTWOOD, Tennessee (WTVF) — The Heart House has opened in the Nashville area, offering free specialized services to anyone impacted by mass violence.

The peaceful space, located at 750 Old Hickory Blvd. Suite 135 inside Building 2 in Brentwood Commons was created to serve a community familiar with this kind of pain. Survivors of school shootings in Green Hills and Antioch, as well as survivors of mass violence in Las Vegas, Orlando, and Boston who now call Nashville home, are among those the center hopes to reach.

“You can walk in, relax, and recognize this is a place I’m safe in and I can focus on my healing here,” said Angie Wortham, the director.

Funded through a federal grant, Tennessee Voices for Victims operates The Heart House and provides free specialized counseling, trauma therapy, and group support for both adults and children.

“I think the validation is what helps people feel maybe I can recover from this, maybe I can reclaim a part of who I used to be and figure out who I’m going to be now,” Valerie Craig, co-founder of Tennessee Voices for Victims.

The idea for The Heart House came from mothers of Covenant School students who wanted a dedicated space for those who have experienced that kind of trauma.

“They really have been a voice in this process,” Craig said.

Annie Wortham, the director of The Heart House, lost her best friend in the Antioch church shooting. She described the center’s effect on those who walk through its doors.

“Just the way you walk in and you feel like you’ve just been hugged, and it’s cozy and wonderful and warm and inviting, and it’s just all those things at one time, it’s an amazing feeling,” Wortham said.

Services at The Heart House go beyond therapy and include after-school programs, book clubs, and more — all at no cost to those who need them.

“We are here to take care of those affected by a mass tragedy,” Wortham said.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Rushaad Hayward

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    BALTIMORE (WMAR) — How far are you willing to go to trace your family’s lineage?

Niecy DeShields-Moulton, a genealogist and public historian, traced her family’s lineage to what’s now known as the Hampton National Historic Site.

For hundreds of years, the area served as a plantation where at its height, more than 800 people were enslaved there.

“When I found out my ancestors were enslaved on this plantation, I became involved,” DeShields-Moulton said.

Her connection to the former plantation in Baltimore County? A man by the name of of George Batty.

“I descend from the Batty branch of descendants. My fourth great grandfather was George Batty,” she said.

Some of Batty’s descendants can be traced to York, Pennsylvania. Including former NFL player Will Beatty, an offensive tackle with two Super Bowl rings.

This led to an event that brought both sides of the family, the ones that stayed in Maryland and the others that went to York together.

On September 27, 2025, the event united descendants whose ancestors fled to freedom and relocated to York and those whose ancestors remained in Maryland.

“The event paid homage to the men, women and children of the Batty family who lived, labored and struggled on the plantation dating back to 1765,” DeShields-Moulton explained.

Debbie Harner, a community engagement and college archivist at Goucher College, says even though this isn’t her history, it’s American history.

“It’s very significant and important not just to have those in power and their stories told, but those who maybe produce the wealth of those who are wealthy,” Harner said.

“We aren’t where we are today because of what happened in the past. And we don’t know where we’re going if we don’t know where we’ve been and I think both are critical. It’s not that history quote unqote repeats itself, but human nature doesn’t change. So I think the lessons of the past can help be a guiding presence for us moving forward,” Harner explained.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Shari Armstrong

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    CAPE CORAL, Florida (WFTX) — For nearly two years, Luz Rincon has grieved privately.

Now, in an exclusive interview with FOX 4’s Shari Armstrong, she is speaking publicly for the first time about the loss of her 15-year-old daughter, Kayla Rincon-Miller — and how her unimaginable heartbreak has grown into a mission to reach teens before they make the kind of choices that change lives forever.

On March 17, 2024, Rincon dropped Kayla off at a movie theater in Cape Coral.

Just hours later, her phone rang.

“The first thing I heard was Kayla got shot,” Luz said.

At first, she didn’t believe it.

“I thought it was a joke. Until I heard her voice in the background say, ‘Am I going to die?’”

Rincon rushed out of her home, and first headed to the theater, where Kayla was supposed to be. But Kayla wasn’t there. She later learned her daughter had gone with friends to McDonald’s after the movie.

Using her daughter’s phone location, Rincon tracked her to a scene filled with law enforcement officers.

Just hours later, her phone rang.

“The first thing I heard was Kayla got shot,” Luz said.

At first, she didn’t believe it.

“I thought it was a joke. Until I heard her voice in the background say, ‘Am I going to die?’”

Rincon rushed out of her home, and first headed to the theater, where Kayla was supposed to be. But Kayla wasn’t there. She later learned her daughter had gone with friends to McDonald’s after the movie.

Using her daughter’s phone location, Rincon tracked her to a scene filled with law enforcement officers.

“The heart gets heavy sometimes. It’s your kid. You’re a mom. You miss their voice… you miss hearing them… you miss hugging them,” Luz said.

She describes the journey as “a rollercoaster of emotions and feelings,” and said her faith has carried her through the darkest moments.

“I am a woman that believes strongly in God. If it wasn’t for Him… I think I would’ve been a mess,” Luz said.

Two teens are charged in Kayla’s murder: Christopher Horne Jr. and Thomas Stein.

In a plea deal, Horne Jr. plead no contest. In exchange, he will testify against Stein during his trial in April. Horne Jr. is expected to be sentenced in May, which was scheduled on Feb. 24.

When asked if she has forgiven those charged with killing Kayla, Luz was candid.

“I wouldn’t say I’ve fully forgiven,” she said.

What she feels most, she said, is sadness.

Luz said, “Not only did you took a life. But you’ve taken your life into… empty walls. For what? Was it worth it?”

She believes different decisions that night could have changed everything.

“I think if these kids would’ve been doing something else… Kayla would’ve been here,” Luz said.

Turning Grief Into Purpose In the months after her daughter’s death, Rincon said she felt compelled to act — not out of anger, but out of urgency.

“I started just feeling such a need to do something,” Luz said.

Alongside her daughter Tatiana, Kayla’s friends and Southwest Florida Crime Stoppers, Rincon launched Kayla’s House — a nonprofit focused on teen crime awareness and gun violence prevention.

The organization aims to open conversations with both teens and parents about choices, consequences and accountability.

“Parents and family… the responsibility falls on us, too,” Rincon said, encouraging adults to secure firearms and stay engaged in their children’s lives.

“We’re not going to save the world…but maybe just one life,” she said.

Kayla’s House is planning its first community event, The Power of Us, featuring food, a DJ, and young business leaders speaking with teens about positive paths forward.

It is scheduled for Saturday, March 14th.

Rincon hopes a young person might look at someone on stage and think, “Hey… that could be me.”

‘Kayla’s death cannot be in vain’ Rincon said she ultimately hopes to grow Kayla’s House into a physical youth center in the same community that has supported her family since 2024.

She said strangers still recognize her.

“I’ve even bumped into people and they’re like, ‘Are you Kayla’s mom?’ That’s helped,” Luz said.

But even with the support, one question still lingers.

“Why did this happen? Why my kid?”

When asked what she believes Kayla would think about the nonprofit created in her name, Rincon smiled through tears.

“I think she would be very proud… that we’re not allowing her death to be in vain,” she said.

As the legal process continues, Rincon said her focus is clear: honoring her daughter’s life by working to ensure another family doesn’t endure the same loss.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Emily Young

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    FORT MYERS, Florida (WFTX) — Do you worry about your child’s mental health and confidence? You’re not alone.

As parents across Southwest Florida look for ways to help their children build resilience and step away from screens, one Fort Myers gym is offering something different — teaching kids how to fall, get back up and keep going, both on the course and in real life.

At Ultimate Ninjas Academy Fort Myers, the focus goes far beyond obstacle courses. Coaches said they are helping children develop confidence, perseverance and lifelong skills in an environment designed to challenge and support them at the same time.

For many parents, watching a child struggle can feel heartbreaking, especially when they aren’t sure how to help.

Amanda Coone knows that feeling well.

Her 6-year-old son, Noah, was born with Hypotonia. It’s a low muscle tone condition that affects his neck, chest and arms. She said when things got difficult, he would often shut down. He doubted himself. He gave up before he even tried.

But that’s not the case anymore.

Now, Amanda said Noah is hanging from monkey bars — holding his own body weight — something that once felt impossible. He’s climbing rock walls, balancing across narrow beams, and jumping to platforms that require both strength and courage.

Coaches break each obstacle into small steps — so every time he makes it a little farther, or holds on a little longer, he builds proof that he can do hard things.

For the first time, she said, he truly believes in himself — and she calls that absolutely priceless.

“Instead of being afraid of other human interaction which I feel like that’s what happening with kids right now, they don’t know how to connect with other people and talk about things so they get in their head. But when you’re here that’s all you do,” Amanda said.

Parents said the gym creates more than physical strength. It builds connection. Every obstacle is approached as a team effort, with kids cheering one another on and learning how to push through challenges together.

In a time when many children feel isolated or overwhelmed, families said this space offers something powerful: community, movement, a safe place to fail — and most importantly, hope.

For kids like Noah, that hope is turning into confidence — one obstacle at a time.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.