According to an October 24 posting on ocala.com, Audrey Smith Storage, located in Summerfield at 14535 S. U.S. 441, is the center of an FBI "ongoing investigation" regarding the distribution of explosive materials by 55-year-old Wayne Farrar of Lake City, Florida, who is was charged in Jacksonville’s federal court of Thursday, October 22. Farrar’s bond hearing is set for Monday (October 26.)
Special Agent Jeff Westcott of the FBI field office in declined to elaborate on the case or comment on whether anything was found in the storage unit, although he did confirm that the investigation originated in Lake City, which is roughly 100 miles north of Summerfield.
Sergeant Jeff Gold, who is in charge of the Marion County Sheriff's Office Bomb Unit, said his personnel wore bomb suits and that Marion County fire officials had on HAZMAT gear when they searched one storage unit. He said they ensured the building was safe before leaving at 6PM.
Head of the Marion County Sheriff Office’s Intelligence, Forensics and Technology Bureau, Major Terry Bovaird, told the Star-Banner (Ocala’s daily newspaper) on Friday (October 23) that the storage unit that was inspected was filled with household goods and that although no explosives were found at the time of the search, the FBI did take some of the items for further review.
Summerfield, which is southeast of Ocala, is an unincorporated community in Marion County, Florida, located near the intersection of US 301 and County Road 475A, and is considered part of the Ocala Metro Area.
Lake City is the county seat of Columbia County and is known as "The Gateway to Florida" as Interstate 75 runs through it, which transports a large percentage of Florida's tourist and commercial traffic. It is the northernmost sizable city in Florida on Interstate 75 and the location where I-10 intersects with I-75.