Counting 'em Down: For better or for worse, this is the Headline Surfer countdown of the 2021's Top 100 biggest news stories of Central Florida along the tourism-driven stretch of Interstate 4 (Orlando Attractions and east to I-95 & the World's Most Famous Beach in Daytona). Each recap segment is posted with its own headline, culminating with the unveiling of No. 1 on New Year's Day or shortly thereafter. Then Headline Surfer will post a Top 10 forecast story of the good, the bad & the ugly on the horizon in "2022: The Year That Lies Ahead."
By HENRY FREDERICK / Headline Surfer
PORT ORANGE, Fla. -- A 24-year-old Port Orange man was arrested in mid-December on a warrant at his apartment on Orange Boulevard charging him with two counts of sexual battery of a child and has been held at the Volusia County Branch Jail on bonds totaling $1 million.
Christopher H. Zinck was arrested on Dec. 15, after Port Orange cops secured a warrant earlier that day on two first-degree felony counts stemming from an investigation that began in early 2021.
According to Port Orange police, the victims -- two girls ages 11 and 14 -- disclosed to detectives that Zinck sexually abused them multiple times in the past, at multiple locations, and over the course of more than a year. Zinck was not a stranger to the victims, said, adding the alleged sexual abuse occurred when he was trusted to be alone with them.
According to Port Orange police, the victims -- two girls ages 11 and 14 -- disclosed to detectives that Zinck sexually abused them multiple times in the past, at multiple locations, and over the course of more than a year. Zinck was not a stranger to the victims, said, adding the alleged sexual abuse occurred when he was trusted to be alone with them.
Zinck is scheduled for a court hearing at 8:30 a.m. Jan. 5 before Circuit Judge Elizabeth Blackburn at the Justice Center in Daytona Beach.
An investigation into Zinck is continuing, and anyone who has any information about potential additional victims is asked to call the Volusia Sheriff’s Office Child Exploitation Unit at 386-323-3574.
About the Byline Writer: Henry Frederick is a member of the working press and publisher of Headline Surfer, the award-winning 24/7 internet news outlet launched in 2008, that serves greater Daytona Beach, Sanford & Orlando from Lake Mary, Florida via HeadlineSurfer.com. Frederick has amassed close to 150 award-winning bylines in print & online. He earned his Master of Arts in New Media Journalism from Full Sail University in 2019. He was a breaking news reporter (metro cops & courts beat) for the Daytona Beach News-Journal for nearly a decade. And Before that worked the same beat for The Journal-News/Gannett Suburban Newspapers in Rockland/Westchester counties, NY, dating back to 1989. Having witnessed the execution of serial killer Aileen Wuornos in Florida's death chamber and covering other high profile cases, Frederick has appeared on national crime documentary shows on Discovery ID, Reelz, and the Oxygen Network series "Snapped" for his analysis. • Award-Winning Journalism: Florida Press Club recognizes Headline Surfer for nine stories in 2020 statewide competition. • Award-Winning Journalism of Henry Frederick.