Palm Beach County authorities are asking women to come forward if they’ve had encounters with a Florida man who allegedly met victims through online dating platforms.

Five months following a sexual assault probe at a Florida medical facility, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office filed a request on July 14. The investigation revealed that the victim had met Stephen Hakim through the dating app, Hinge. Investigators ultimately connected Hakim’s DNA with evidence gathered from the victim, according to legal filings.

Testing revealed several sleep-inducing drugs in the woman’s system, though she insisted she hadn’t consumed them.

Hakim, based in Delray Beach, was detained on July 8 and accused of sexual assault. He was subsequently freed the following day after posting a $25,000 bond, and he has entered a plea of not guilty.

The woman recounted to deputies that after connecting with Hakim on Hinge, they chatted on the app for about an hour before shifting to texting and video calls, according to the reports.

The alleged victim and Hakim, 27, agreed to meet later that day without “any expectations or pretenses” for “a relaxed evening to talk,” deputies who reviewed the messages reported in court documents. The woman told deputies that Hakim picked up her up in his car around 11 p.m. to go to a bar, court records show. But instead, he drove her to his apartment.

She recalled riding in his black Tesla as he sped along at “90 to 100 miles per hour,” court documents show. She reported that his “very clean” apartment had very little furniture and no television or pets. The woman told deputies they drank four beers and discussed topics like work. Then, Hakim offered to give her a massage, the alleged victim told deputies. It was then that she became “super tired” and “couldn’t get up” before being assaulted, she told deputies. Afterward, she was “very upset” and told Hakim that he’d raped her, she told deputies. She reported that Hakim asked what she was talking about in “gaslighting” behavior, records show.

Hakim’s attorney provided a statement to multiple news outlets saying his client denies allegations that his actions were “unconsented.” The firm did not respond to a request for comment from News Media.

About 53 percent of adults ages 18 to 29 have used a dating app, a 2023 Pew Research report showed. Since the late 90’s, the online dating industry has “transformed” the way that some adults find potential matches, study researchers wrote. Dating apps aren’t inherently dangerous, said Megan Cutter, chief of victim services for the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN). The organization operates the National Sexual Assault Hotline.

Many relationships that begin on dating apps go on to be healthy and long lasting, she said. But perpetrators also use dating platforms to further criminal behavior, Cutter said.

Only about one in three victims report their sexual assault to law enforcement, she said.

Sometimes, that’s because abusers and perpetrators threaten to hurt victims and their families if they contact authorities, Cutter said.

One in 6 women in the United States has experienced attempted or completed rape in her lifetime, according to RAINN. Women ages 18 to 24 are at the most risk of being victims of sexual assault than any other age group. “We really want to think about how we stay safe on the internet” when using online dating services, Cutter said. Profiles that don’t have many details, links to social media, and aren’t “built out” should raise concern, she warned.

“Matches” who quickly want to exchange contact information and move conversations off the app also should spark wariness.

“Once they have your email or your phone number, they might use that to figure out where you live or find your social media.”

She warns users to post different photos on a dating profile than they would on personal social media. That’s because reverse image searches now quickly can link photos to other places they can be found online, such as on social media posts that could share personal information.

Removing the metadata from posted photos also decreases the risk of personal information being acquired, she said. Metadata is hidden information attached to digital files that can be accessed and may provide information, such as location and date. Online dating is “something millions of people use all the time,” Cutter said. “People find really lovely, healthy, successful relationships online. The risk is really when perpetrators misuse that tool and hurt people.”

Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office investigators believe there “may be additional victims who have not yet come forward,” the agency wrote in a post on social media.

The Special Victims Unit is “asking for the public’s help in identifying anyone who may have had encounters with Stephen Hakim, who allegedly met victims through online dating platforms.”

In the realm of education, the future is becoming decidedly robotic.

Nestled in the scenic landscapes of upstate New York, a rural school district is set to make history. The Salamanca City Central School District will be among the pioneering educational institutions in the United States to integrate a humanoid robot into its learning environment.

Positioned on the historic lands of the Seneca Nation, the district recently announced its groundbreaking initiative. Starting this September, high school students will meet “Sally,” a cutting-edge robotic teaching aide with a price tag of $57,000, powered by artificial intelligence. This initiative represents a collaboration with Realbotix Corporation, a tech company based in Las Vegas.

Sporting brown hair and a lifelike latex exterior, Sally will be able to move her arms and hands with fluidity, although she won’t be traversing the classroom, as her legs are stationary.

Superintendent Dr. Mark Beehler shared with The Post, “It’s both thrilling and somewhat daunting to embark on this novel educational journey,” referring to this innovative pilot program’s introduction.

“Not everyone is open to much change in education…There was a point in time where people argued ‘Why do teachers need email accounts?’ or ‘Do we really need to have the internet in school?’ This is the next iteration of that. And the reality is, AI is already in schools,” he said.

For now, Sally is scheduled to be in 11th and 12th graders at Salamanca High School where she will take a byte out of coding, robotic, and artificial intelligence classes.

To make Sally more approachable, she’ll feature a western New York accent — similar to Buffalo native Gov. Kathy Hochul — at the behest of the school district.

“We don’t really hear the accent. We think it sounds neutral,” Beehler joked.

The bot, which uses about the same amount of electricity as a laptop, will assistant students and teachers in classes that are in the Woz Ed Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics courses, which was developed by the founder of Apple Steve Wozniak.

In September she will be available for only coding, robotics, and AI classes, according to Beehler.

School officials vowed that “Sally” will “never” usher out teachers.

“The Realbotix educational robot will never replace teachers, staff members, or meaningful human interaction,” the district said in a statement.

“Instead, it serves as another instructional tool that educators can use to engage students, reinforce classroom learning, and spark curiosity about emerging technologies.”

There will be many guardrails on Sally which operates on an off-line, closed AI system that is designed not to give answer, but to respond with prompts to students questions.

“It will provide data but will encourage the student to think for themselves and demonstrate a comprehension of the material,” said Beeher.

“Sally” will not collect any personal information, record any video or audio, and will not transmit any data to Realbotix, the superintendent assured.

The more advanced $125,000 full-bodied F-Series model from Realbotix stands on its own two legs, but still requires wheels to get around.

The city of Salamanca is on the Allegany Indian Reservation, which is roughly 60 miles south of Buffalo, and is governed by the Seneca Nation of Indians.

The district has approximately 1,400 registered students, with over 32% identifying as American Indian, according to the state Education Department.

In a harrowing incident deep within California’s wilderness, two Forest Service employees found themselves held at gunpoint for almost 15 hours by a father-son duo. This dramatic ordeal unfolded in a secluded trailer, leaving the workers trapped and at the mercy of their captors, according to prosecutors.

The employees, whose identities have not been disclosed, were performing routine fieldwork in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest when the ambush occurred on Thursday. Their peaceful day quickly turned into a nightmare as they were confronted by their captors.

Facing serious federal kidnapping charges are Joseph Henrichsen, 49, alongside his 23-year-old son, Phoenix. The duo allegedly held the workers hostage near the scenic yet isolated Gumboot Lake area, intensifying the gravity of the situation.

Unsettling details emerged as the father reportedly called law enforcement himself, admitting to having the two employees restrained with zip ties and held at gunpoint. He ominously mentioned that he was armed and ready to act against any intervention, prosecutors revealed.

His demands included communication with the FBI, though authorities are still working to uncover the true motive behind these events as the investigation continues. The perplexing nature of the abductions has left many questions unanswered.

The disturbing call triggered a massive hostage standoff involving local, state and federal agencies, with negotiations dragging on for nearly 15 hours before the suspects finally surrendered. 

The victims were evaluated following their rescue in the early hours of Friday and returned home after officials found no reported injuries. 

‘Crisis situations like this don’t often result in everyone leaving the scene safely,’ FBI Sacramento acting Special Agent in Charge Brian Tosh said. ‘Both are resting and will need some time to process this experience.’

Authorities first learned of the abductions just before 11am when Joseph called them from one of the victim’s phones, according to Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Department Chief Jeremiah LaRue. 

During the call, he allegedly declared that he had ‘taken two fed employees hostage from the Forest Service’ and was holding them at gunpoint, before demanding to speak with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

He added that one of the victims was ‘zip-tied’ with their hands ‘behind their [expletive] back’ and that he had ‘live rounds ready to [expletive] anyone who [expletives] with me,’ according to prosecutors.

Sheriff’s deputies and the department’s special response team rushed to the scene around noon and immediately deployed drones over the rural area. Within 20 minutes, they had contacted the FBI’s Sacramento field office.

The FBI deployed agents from its Redding office, a crisis negotiation team and SWAT operators, along with a hostage rescue team and additional assets from Quantico, Virginia, which were flown in aboard a Boeing 757. 

Shasta County alone sent 30 sworn and civilian personnel to the scene, including its SWAT team, sniper unit, hostage negotiators, bomb squad and drone operators, according to Sheriff Michael Johnson. 

Special Agent Tosh said the national tactical team was brought in as a precaution because any standoff carries the risk of escalating, even with a secure perimeter surrounding the trailer.

Drones helped authorities pinpoint the trailer where the victims were being held hidden inside a rugged campground surrounded by dense woods at around 1pm. 

Nearly 30 minutes later, retired Palo Alto resident Henry Magnuski, 81, was stopped by officers in full tactical gear as he drove to his seasonal cabin near Picayune Lake, according to SF Gate.

‘At first, I thought it was a training exercise or something like that,’ he told the outlet.

He was asked to drive authorities farther up the road, where he learned that two people were being held hostage and that the one-way route into the area would be closed.

During the press briefing, Sheriff Johnson explained that the terrain posed a challenge, as the area was accessible only by a narrow, single-lane road that restricted access for emergency resources. 

‘I was totally amazed by this event because that area is really the backwoods, remote, far away,’ Magnuski said. ‘Cars were going to the barricades every five minutes. It was incredible.’

Negotiations officially began after 4pm Thursday, but the two federal employees were not released until 1.50am Friday morning – spending more than 12 hours held at gunpoint. 

‘It was a large incident and I’d like to tell you it’s probably the smoothest thing I’ve seen in years,’ Sheriff LaRue said.

The first employee was released around 1.35am, with the second freed about 15 minutes later. Joseph and his son Phoenix surrendered to authorities at 2.30am, roughly 40 minutes after the rescues.

Investigators said Joseph was carrying an AR-15-style rifle and knives when he surrendered, and he also claimed to have grenades on him, according to Tosh. 

A motive remains under investigation, as Joseph stopped communicating with authorities at some point during the standoff. 

US Attorney Eric Grant said both men would face charges of kidnapping federal employees and expressed confidence that a US magistrate judge would sign off on the charges. 

If convicted, the suspects face a maximum penalty of life in prison and a $250,000 fine. 

In a statement released after Thursday’s dramatic incident, US Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz said: ‘I am grateful beyond words that both of our Forest Service employees are home safe.

‘Our focus now is simple: The well-being of our employees and their families. Their well-being continues to be our highest priority.’

It has since emerged that Joseph, who also went by the name Christopher Perry, was previously accused of a hate crime in Washington state after allegedly harassing landlords of Russian and Ukrainian descent, according to a 2022 report by the Bellingham Herald. 

Court records revealed that he allegedly threw fireworks onto their property, left homemade handcuffs outside and left a written note on their front door – one side featuring a drawing of a penis and the other reading, ‘Assassinate Vlad Putin.’ 

The Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office said Joseph was experiencing a ‘spiraling mental health condition,’ The Herald reported. His case was eventually dismissed when officials were unable to place him in a state psychiatric facility for treatment. 

According to a 2022 Bellingham Herald article, one of Joseph’s family members said his behavior began to unravel about a year before his arrest and spiraled after the death of his ex-wife in August 2021. 

CHICAGO (WLS) — The Chicago area continues to be under an Air Quality Alert this Saturday, as smoke drifts south from the ongoing wildfires in Canada.

ABC7 Chicago is now streaming 24/7. Click here to watch

According to ABC7 meteorologist Jaisol Martinez, the air quality started off as “moderate” on Saturday morning. However, there is a possibility it might degrade to levels deemed “unhealthy for sensitive groups” due to increasing ozone levels.

Even though residents of Chicago are experiencing brief relief from the thick smoke, Martinez advises that wind patterns are expected to blow windy conditions back into the city by Saturday afternoon.

The prediction is for the smoky haze to return to Chicago around 5 p.m. or by sunset, bringing renewed air quality concerns.

Martinez points out that while the air quality may be labeled “unhealthy,” the intensity of the smoke is not expected to reach the levels observed on Thursday.

Smoke will linger into Sunday.

Storms are forecast to bring rain to Chicago from noon to 5 p.m. Saturday.

Most of the Chicago area, north and west suburbs are under a Level 1 risk for severe weather. Southern suburbs and northwest Indiana are under a Level 2.

TRACKING AIR QUALITY | Click here to check air quality in Chicago area