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'No evidence' of crime in 57 deaths related to Florida's Sloth World: Sheriff
The animals were captured from their rainforest habitats and taken to an Orlando warehouse that was permitted for vehicle storage
Author of the article:Eddie Chau
Published Aug 26, 2026 • Last updated 18 hours ago • 1 minute read
Sloth in Panama. Photo by Parkol /Getty Images
The deaths of dozens of sloths in Florida was not criminal.
That’s what the Orange County Sheriff’s Office ruled after at least 57 sloths connected to the failed Sloth World attraction that was once planned for Orlando died.
The sheriff’s office said the deaths of the slow-moving mammals were the result of “multiple contributing factors affecting the overall health and survivability of the animals — and not a criminal act,” Central Florida Public Media reported.
Authorities didn’t find any evidence of intentional harm, abuse, criminal neglect or any deliberate act or omission by Sloth World personnel that met standards required by state law.
‘Multiple stressors’
The investigation’s findings noted the deaths were “consistent with a complex health-related event involving multiple stressors associated with the capture, transportation, acclimation, and continued care of a highly specialized species.”
As reported by People, an investigation was opened in May after dozens of wild sloths imported to Orlando from South America for Sloth World died. The animals were captured from their natural rainforest habitats, imported to the United States and taken to an Orlando warehouse that was permitted for vehicle storage and not live animals.
In December 2024, at least 21 sloths died in the warehouse that was “not ready to receive the sloths,” the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission records noted.
The facility had no running water or electricity days before the shipment arrived, and it was “too late to cancel,” according to inspectors.
The deaths of the sloths drew national attention earlier this year. Sloth World never opened, and the 13 surviving sloths were surrendered and transported to Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens in Sanford, Fla., for rehabilitation, per People. Two sloths have since died at the zoo.
After a 60-day import ban, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission have added a new permit requirement for importing sloths.
cfpublic.org
torontosun.com
The animals were captured from their rainforest habitats and taken to an Orlando warehouse that was permitted for vehicle storage
Author of the article:Eddie Chau
Published Aug 26, 2026 • Last updated 18 hours ago • 1 minute read
Sloth in Panama. Photo by Parkol /Getty Images
The deaths of dozens of sloths in Florida was not criminal.
That’s what the Orange County Sheriff’s Office ruled after at least 57 sloths connected to the failed Sloth World attraction that was once planned for Orlando died.
The sheriff’s office said the deaths of the slow-moving mammals were the result of “multiple contributing factors affecting the overall health and survivability of the animals — and not a criminal act,” Central Florida Public Media reported.
Authorities didn’t find any evidence of intentional harm, abuse, criminal neglect or any deliberate act or omission by Sloth World personnel that met standards required by state law.
‘Multiple stressors’
The investigation’s findings noted the deaths were “consistent with a complex health-related event involving multiple stressors associated with the capture, transportation, acclimation, and continued care of a highly specialized species.”
As reported by People, an investigation was opened in May after dozens of wild sloths imported to Orlando from South America for Sloth World died. The animals were captured from their natural rainforest habitats, imported to the United States and taken to an Orlando warehouse that was permitted for vehicle storage and not live animals.
In December 2024, at least 21 sloths died in the warehouse that was “not ready to receive the sloths,” the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission records noted.
The facility had no running water or electricity days before the shipment arrived, and it was “too late to cancel,” according to inspectors.
The deaths of the sloths drew national attention earlier this year. Sloth World never opened, and the 13 surviving sloths were surrendered and transported to Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens in Sanford, Fla., for rehabilitation, per People. Two sloths have since died at the zoo.
After a 60-day import ban, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission have added a new permit requirement for importing sloths.
OCSO finds ‘no evidence’ criminal act caused dozens of sloth deaths
Leading sloth experts say the agency’s finding underscores the need to address glaring flaws with current animal welfare protections.
cfpublic.org
'No evidence' of crime in 57 deaths related to Florida's Sloth World: Sheriff
The sheriff's office said the deaths of the slow-moving mammals were the result of multiple contributing factors. Read on.
Holy flock.
Has there ever been a dumber idea than thinking something called sloth world could actually make money? Yeah like people are going to pay money to go there to watch them sit and do nothing.
What kind of drugs must you have done to think this was a viable option?
Has there ever been a dumber idea than thinking something called sloth world could actually make money? Yeah like people are going to pay money to go there to watch them sit and do nothing.
What kind of drugs must you have done to think this was a viable option?
Sentencing dates set for Ont. teen in brutal murder of 11-year-old girl
The 15-year-old pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in June and is expected to be sentenced in mid-October.
Author of the article:Jane Sims
Published Sep 01, 2026 • Last updated 11 hours ago • 3 minute read
Editor’s note: This story contains details that will be disturbing to some readers.
The sentencing of a teen who admitted to brutally stabbing an 11-year-old girl to death is on track for mid-October.
At a brief video court appearance Tuesday in Goderich, Superior Court Justice Marc Garson pencilled in Oct. 13, 14 and 16 for the 15-year-old youth’s sentencing hearing after he pleaded guilty in June to first-degree murder.
His guilty plea came almost two years after the girl was found dying with 70 stab wounds in a wooded area near Holmesville, a quiet rural Huron County community just west of Clinton.
The July 2, 2024, murder shocked the region and made the teen one of the youngest people in recent memory to face the most serious criminal charge in Canadian law.
The only potential delay is whether the psychiatric assessment ordered by the court after the June guilty plea is completed before the end of the month.
Assistant Crown attorney Deanna Bronowicki advised Garson that victim impact statements, community impact statements and a pre-sentence report are ready and have been disclosed to the defence. She said she was informed the psychiatric report is expected to be completed by Sept. 28.
Some time will be required to prepare for the hearing once that report is filed. It’s anticipated there will be two days of submissions from the Crown and defence.
Garson repeated what he has promised since June – that the youth’s sentencing will take priority over other matters in the jurisdiction. Another brief court appearance is slated for Sept. 29 to ensure the report has been completed and the sentencing can go ahead as scheduled.
Court-ordered publication bans protect the identities of the victim and the teen, who appeared in court by video link from a youth detention facility.
Garson heard a shocking outline of the facts of the case at the youth’s guilty plea.
The teen knew the girl and had harboured a desire to have sexual activity with her. He had also been viewing large quantities of online pornography in the months leading up to the killing and had accessed pornography websites more than 2,000 times.
The youth and the girl were on their way to a playground near the former Holmesville public school when they went into a wooded area. The youth wanted sex and, when the girl tried to resist him, he attacked her with a knife.
During the struggle, the teen removed her pants and pulled down her underwear. He touched her sexually as she was dying or after she had died.
She was discovered by OPP officers only after the youth called 911 and claimed the girl had been abducted by three men in a white truck.
As he spoke to the dispatcher, officers tracked the youth down along a rural road and saw he had blood on his hands and clothing. He deleted messages from his phone while sitting in the police cruiser, and the story he told didn’t add up.
The girl was found with no vital signs about an hour after the youth called police. She was rushed to Clinton Public Hospital and pronounced dead. She had been stabbed multiple times in the head, face, neck, torso and extremities. Both her carotid artery and jugular vein were severed, one lung had collapsed and she had wounds that entered her sinus and cranial cavities.
The teen’s DNA was found throughout the crime scene and on the girl’s body. A search of his bedroom a day later uncovered, among other evidence, 27 photos he had taken on his phone of parts of the girl’s body in the days before the murder.
There are provisions in the Youth Criminal Justice Act that give some indication of the sentence the teen could face.
Because he was only 13 at the time of the killing, he cannot be sentenced as an adult. The maximum youth sentence for first-degree murder is 10 years – six years in custody and four years under community supervision.
His 26 months of pre-sentence custody is also expected to be considered at sentencing.
jsims@postmedia.com
torontosun.com
The 15-year-old pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in June and is expected to be sentenced in mid-October.
Author of the article:Jane Sims
Published Sep 01, 2026 • Last updated 11 hours ago • 3 minute read
Editor’s note: This story contains details that will be disturbing to some readers.
The sentencing of a teen who admitted to brutally stabbing an 11-year-old girl to death is on track for mid-October.
At a brief video court appearance Tuesday in Goderich, Superior Court Justice Marc Garson pencilled in Oct. 13, 14 and 16 for the 15-year-old youth’s sentencing hearing after he pleaded guilty in June to first-degree murder.
His guilty plea came almost two years after the girl was found dying with 70 stab wounds in a wooded area near Holmesville, a quiet rural Huron County community just west of Clinton.
The July 2, 2024, murder shocked the region and made the teen one of the youngest people in recent memory to face the most serious criminal charge in Canadian law.
The only potential delay is whether the psychiatric assessment ordered by the court after the June guilty plea is completed before the end of the month.
Assistant Crown attorney Deanna Bronowicki advised Garson that victim impact statements, community impact statements and a pre-sentence report are ready and have been disclosed to the defence. She said she was informed the psychiatric report is expected to be completed by Sept. 28.
Some time will be required to prepare for the hearing once that report is filed. It’s anticipated there will be two days of submissions from the Crown and defence.
Garson repeated what he has promised since June – that the youth’s sentencing will take priority over other matters in the jurisdiction. Another brief court appearance is slated for Sept. 29 to ensure the report has been completed and the sentencing can go ahead as scheduled.
Court-ordered publication bans protect the identities of the victim and the teen, who appeared in court by video link from a youth detention facility.
Garson heard a shocking outline of the facts of the case at the youth’s guilty plea.
The teen knew the girl and had harboured a desire to have sexual activity with her. He had also been viewing large quantities of online pornography in the months leading up to the killing and had accessed pornography websites more than 2,000 times.
The youth and the girl were on their way to a playground near the former Holmesville public school when they went into a wooded area. The youth wanted sex and, when the girl tried to resist him, he attacked her with a knife.
During the struggle, the teen removed her pants and pulled down her underwear. He touched her sexually as she was dying or after she had died.
She was discovered by OPP officers only after the youth called 911 and claimed the girl had been abducted by three men in a white truck.
As he spoke to the dispatcher, officers tracked the youth down along a rural road and saw he had blood on his hands and clothing. He deleted messages from his phone while sitting in the police cruiser, and the story he told didn’t add up.
The girl was found with no vital signs about an hour after the youth called police. She was rushed to Clinton Public Hospital and pronounced dead. She had been stabbed multiple times in the head, face, neck, torso and extremities. Both her carotid artery and jugular vein were severed, one lung had collapsed and she had wounds that entered her sinus and cranial cavities.
The teen’s DNA was found throughout the crime scene and on the girl’s body. A search of his bedroom a day later uncovered, among other evidence, 27 photos he had taken on his phone of parts of the girl’s body in the days before the murder.
There are provisions in the Youth Criminal Justice Act that give some indication of the sentence the teen could face.
Because he was only 13 at the time of the killing, he cannot be sentenced as an adult. The maximum youth sentence for first-degree murder is 10 years – six years in custody and four years under community supervision.
His 26 months of pre-sentence custody is also expected to be considered at sentencing.
jsims@postmedia.com
Sentencing dates set for teen in brutal murder of 11-year-old girl
The 15-year-old pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in June and is expected to be sentenced in mid-October.