POLK COUNTY, Fla. — Following a series of high-profile murder investigations, the Polk County Sheriff's Office says it's experiencing a rise in homicides this year.
Data provided by the sheriff's office shows, so far, in 2021, there have been 34 homicides – the same number of homicides in all of 2020. Both years are higher than the previous two.
In 2019, the sheriff's office says there were 19 homicides in the county. In 2018, there were 27.
One of those high-profiled homicides happened earlier this month in Davenport, where a Philadelphia electrician is accused of murdering three co-workers with a baseball bat. The state attorney's office on Tuesday said it would be seeking the death penalty in that man's case.
The most recent homicide investigation involves a man who deputies say "violently" killed his 74-year-old adoptive mother before burying her in the backyard. The man was arrested in Texas by U.S. Marshals.