Wanted Osceola County sex offender caught in Bahamas, deputies say

Loomes Wheeler vanished cut off GPS tracking device in Sept. 2013

OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. – A sex offender wanted in Osceola County since September 2013 on sexual abuse charges is in custody on Wednesday after being found in the Bahamas, deputies said.

Loomes Wheeler, Jr., 70, was located on the Exuma Islands in the Bahamas on Monday and is being brought back to Osceola County jail.

Wheeler, who also owned the Horse World Riding Stables, was arrested in April on charges of sexually abusing a 9-year-old girl over 100 times. Another woman came forward after the arrest saying Wheeler also abused her several years ago when she was around 6 years old.

In September 2013, Wheeler cut off his GPS tracking device and fled his home on Granada Boulevard in Kissimmee. Deputies said it wasn't until hours later that the GPS monitoring company alerted them that the device had been tampered with. Deputies said they found the device thrown in the woods near Wheeler's home.

Wheeler was located by the Drug Enforcement Agency in the Bahamas during an unrelated investigation.


Recommended Videos