Mount Dora Police are investigating an armed robbery that happened at the Dollar General at 3850 State Road 19A at approximately 9:55 p.m. on May 20. 

Police responded to a report of an armed robber that entered after all the customers had left.  There were two employees in the store at the time of the robbery.   

A man dressed in all black and wearing a face mask entered the store after all the customers had left and jumped over the counter and pointed a black and silver semi-automatic handgun at the clerk while demanding money.   There were two employees in the store.   The clerk was unable to open the safe and was ordered to lay on the floor while a male employee came to the front. 

The suspect demanded the safe to be opened, however a timer prevented access. The suspect, described as a slim black male between 5'3" and 5'5", took cash from the register and fled the store.

Another male was seen at the front of the store with his face covered.

Lake County Sheriff’s Office assisted in the search with a K9, where a scent was tracked east towards 3719 Lake Center Drive before it was lost.  

Police are investigating whether this robbery is connected to the recent McDonald’s robberies.   In the two most recent crimes, the suspects were black males wearing all black, demanded victims lay on the floor, sought money from a safe, used small handguns and initially fled on foot.  There have been no arrests in either robbery. 

Detectives are also working with other police agencies to determine if the robberies are linked to other crimes.

If anyone knows anything, they are asked to call the Mount Dora Police Department at 352-735- 7130 or Crimeline at 1-800-423-TIPS.

For more news and events in Mount Dora, Tavares & Eustis, click here. Find out what's happening locally with just a tap on your phone by downloading the area's free mobile app.  Monthly issues of Mount Dora Buzz are available here. ​

The McDonald’s restaurant at 18900 US. 441 in Mount Dora was robbed at gunpoint early this morning. 

The victims told police three black males, dressed in all black and wearing black masks or bandanas, came into the restaurant carrying small guns while customers were inside.  The incident happened at approximately 3:30 a.m.    No injuries were reported.

A manager was made to open the cash registers and a safe while customers and employees were told to lay on the floor. They were then forced to the back of the restaurant into the walk-in freezer.    One of the victims reported having a gun placed against her back while being shoved into the freezer.  The victims were locked in the freezer for approximately 10 minutes during which time they attempted to call 911 but there was no service. 

The thieves threatened to shoot a pregnant employee if she didn't hurry.  They made off with a bag of cash, the register drawers, and cell phones.  

As the robbery was in progress, a driver pulled into the drive-thru.  A suspect reportedly pointed a gun at that driver, resulting in the driver leaving and immediately calling 911.

After the robbery the suspects fled on foot, a witness outside the McDonald’s said they ran southbound on Donnelly Street where a K-9 was able to track them, but lost the scent.

This is the second armed robbery at the location in recent months.  The first one was February 11 at 3 a.m.

Of the three men wearing all black, one of the men was reportedly wearing Dickies and a sweater-like shirt. A witness described one of the weapons as silver and possibly a .38 or .45 caliber handgun  If anyone knows anything, they are asked to call Mount Dora Police or Crimeline at 1-800-423-TIPS. ​

For more news and events in Mount Dora, Tavares & Eustis, click here. Find out what's happening locally with just a tap on your phone by downloading the area's free mobile app.  Monthly issues of Mount Dora Buzz are available here.

Residents' frustrated over unwanted publications littering their neighborhoods and driveways now have one  less thing to worry about.  

A  new city  ordinance requires these forms of communications to provide an 'unsubscribe' phone number for  residents and businesses owners to call in order to stop delivery.  The cancellation will take effect within ten days of the owner receiving a confirmation letter from the publication.  If a flyer, publication or piece of advertising does not provide an unsubscribe number or if the company continues to distribute the publication, residents should call  Mount Dora Code Enforcement at 352-735-7127. ​

​For more news and events in Mount Dora, Tavares & Eustis, click here. Find out what's happening locally with just a tap on your phone by downloading the area's free mobile app.  Monthly issues of Mount Dora Buzz are available here.

By Marc Crail
Mount Dora City Council Member, District 4

I'm happy to give you this update on the May 2 Mount Dora City Council Meeting.   I am just one of seven city council members and not its spokesman.  I try to be unbiased in my reports, but what you're receiving is strictly from my perspective.

City Council meeting was fairly brief but several resolutions were passed. Let me share a few of them with you.

1.    We approved a resolution to make several mid-year budget adjustments. All budgets change over time. Events such as Hurricane Matthew caused unexpected overtime pay for cleanup of debris. Sometimes expenses are lower than anticipated and money saved can be returned to the General Fund or shifted to another fund. The City Manager presented her list of mid-year fund transfers that were approved unanimously.

2.    We lease a city owned building located at 1560 North Highland St. to Episcopal Children's Services at no cost so they can run a Head Start program that serves 3-4 year old children in Mount Dora. Episcopal Children's Services is obligated to maintain the building in exchange for their use of it. They have received a federal grant to replace the roof, windows, etc. and generally improve the facility. We needed to approve those renovations. Good news for Mount Dora preschoolers and good work by Episcopal Children's Services!

3.    Disc Golf is a rapidly growing sport that can be enjoyed by players of any age and ability. We currently have a 9 "hole" course in town and we will be adding another nine "holes". Other Lake County cities are also building disc golf facilities. Together we will have the Lake County Disc Golf Trail. Sports tourism is a great way to increase tourism in our county and our city.  Representatives from the Florida Disc Golf Foundation were on hand and expect to compete to host regional, national and possibly even world disc golf events in future years.

These were all positives as far as I'm concerned.

The quote for today is from Mother Teresa who said; "Never worry about numbers. Help one person at a time, and always start with the person nearest you."

I appreciate your interest in Mount Dora city government and I also appreciate the opportunity to serve our great town.

Marc Crail
District 4 City Council Rep.

For more news and events in Mount Dora, Tavares & Eustis, click here. Find out what's happening locally with just a tap on your phone by downloading the area's free mobile app.  Monthly issues of Mount Dora Buzz are available here.