Lake Underhill, FL– Investigators from Orlando PD and Orange County Sheriff’s Office say a semi-automatic handgun recovered from Lake Underhill yesterday is tied to a homicide. The weapon was located by OCSO divers around 10am while additional undisclosed evidence was collected later in the afternoon.

What they will not say, is in what murder case it may have been used, or who they believe it belongs to.

Sources inside the investigation speaking to blinkoncrime.com have confirmed the gun was located through a tip by an individual known to them, and not an anonymous call in.

Previously reported by blinkoncrime.com, the cases of missing Orange County residents Onda “Chris” George and Tracy Ocasio are still open without arrests, or any clue where they might be. Chris George has been missing since the evening of February 11, 2009 and Tracy Ocasio since the early morning hours of May 27, 2009. 

Tyler Watters, an Ocoee resident, was with Onda “Chris” George when Watters says George drove through some barbed wire, jumped out of the SUV he was driving and ran off into the woods. Watters was the last person to see Chris George alive.

Waiting at a local residence for George and Watters return, was James “Jimmy” Hataway and their respective girlfriends at the time. 

Blinkoncrime.com is withholding their names as they are material witnesses in George’s disappearance.

Both Watters and Hataway were questioned regarding Chris George’s disappearance, and the fact that they staged the return of the SUV after cleaning it out, the next day. Searches for George have turned up empty and no charges have been filed in his case.

Hataway was also last seen with Tracy Ocasio leaving The Florida Tap Room May 27.  Hataway alleges the two returned to his home in Ocoee very briefly and Ocasio left. Tracy Ocasio’s car was found to be parked nearby the next day. Although Hataway has been referred to as a person of interest in Ocasio’s disappearance, no charges have been filed.

Jimmy Hataway is currently awaiting trial in Seminole County on attempted murder charges alleging he attacked an aquaintance after a party. Jury selection was scheduled to begin on April 26^th, but Hataway’s public defender was granted a continuance when they showed up in court that morning. It would appear that we may soon be able to hear a bit more of Hataway’s versions of events. The phone calls he made or received in jail will be released in accordance with Florida Sunshine Laws.

Tyler Watters is currently out on bond for misdemeanor weed posession and felony heroin trafficking, allegedly occuring the day after Hataway’s postponment on 4/27/10.

Coincidently, there was a notice of supplemental discovery on his docket the day before the search of Lake Underhill was scheduled, and then filed just yesterday, his attorney’s certification of conflict and motion to withdraw, following the guns recovery. 

Both Hataway and Watters are due back in court in two weeks.

At this time, It is not known if the tip or the weapon recovery is related to the Ocasio or George cases; check back to blinkoncrime.com for updates to this developing story. 

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Images Courtesy of Klaasend

Ocoee, FL– Tracy Ocasio has been missing since May 27^th following an evening at the Florida Tap Room where she was last seen with person of interest James “Jimmy” Hataway. In the initial days of the investigation, there were multiple reports that Hataway was a suspect in Ocasio’s disappearance, a suspect in the disappearance of Apopka man Onda “Chris” George,and as many as 5 other assaults on women.

To date, only one of those allegations has resulted in new charges against Hataway. In Seminole County, Hataway is facing charges for his alleged assault against Rachel Clarke, 23, for a Casselberry, FL incident  last August.  Hataway is charged with Burglary of a conveyance with a battery, robbery, false imprisonment and battery. Uncovered exclusively at blinkoncrime.com, there is new inside information on this pending case. Speaking on the condition of anonymity, Jimmy Hataways’ closest friend told blinkoncrime police actually entered the residence he shared with Hataway shortly after the incident and cuffed him, thinking he was Jimmy. Once it was determined he was not and that he did not know his immediate whereabouts, police left the home.

Although they continued to reside in the same location for another 2 1/2 months and police had Hataways cell phone number, police never contacted Jimmy Hataway about the alleged incident. They did not interview the roommate either. In the almost 10 months following the alleged battery against Rachel Clarke, investigators never interviewed the suspect in a case which now carries a bond of $250K and a lengthy prison stint if convicted. 

Other than Jimmy and Ms. Clarke, there is only one other known witness in this case whom LE also elected not to interview until after Hataway was arrested on the paraphanalia charge in Orange County. Where did they find this prospective witness almost 10 months later? Across the Pod from Jimmy Hataway in the Seminole County Jail; he is attempting to cut a deal to get out of charges stemming from his chronic crack cocaine addiction.

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Ocoee, FL– The following is my radio interview July 9, 2009 regarding the developments into the case of missing 27 year old Tracy Ocasio.

The Following Is an update to the Tracy Ocasio case. Blinkoncrime and contributing editors are currently working on an inside look at Ms. Ocasios’ disappearance, and perhaps some of the reasons many may feel Ocoee Police should be requesting outside asisstance in this case. Check Back to Blinkoncrime.com for our exclusive expose based on witness statements.

Ocoee, FL– The disappearance of 27 year old Tracy Ocasio seems to have hit a wall. Tracy was last seen leaving the Tap Room Bar in Orlando after 1:30am on May 27^th, with James “Jimmy” Hataway. Late this morning, I received a copy of a letter sent to Florida Governor Charlie Crist:

Office of Governor Charlie Crist
State of Florida
The Capitol
400 S. Monroe St.
Tallahassee, FL 32399-0001

Dear Governor Crist:

I write to you today as a voter, and a Florida resident, but most importantly I write to you as a parent. We have a situation going on in a small suburb of Orlando called Ocoee, that needs your immediate attention, and action. On 5/27/09 a beautiful young woman by the name of Tracy Ocasio went missing. Her parents Joe and Liz are living every parent’s worst nightmare, they know that something terrible has happened to their beloved daughter, but as of today she still hasn’t been found. The police have a person of interest in jail on another charge, but there are other people involved that have not been investigated by the police, and no one seems to know why. Sir, please ask the FBI, and the FDLE to step in and take control of this case, Tracy’s parents deserve that and so does Tracy. I’m afraid if another agency doesn’t take over this investigation that, Tracy will never be found, and justice will never be served.

Please I implore you, help Tracy and her parents, get the FDLE and FBI to Ocoee today.

Thank you,

Hataway is currently in the Seminole County Jail awaiting a preliminary hearing on July 28 on charges stemming from an incident last August that prosecutors originally declined to file. When Hataway surfaced as a person of interest and arrested on a paraphenalia charge while Ocoee Police were searching his home, his alleged victim, Rachel Clarke, returned to the States Attorneys’ office to again request that charges were filed.

 Requests for comments from Gov. Crists office were unreturned as of press time.