Florida's Most Popular Facebook Stories This Week

From $56 million in cocaine found in St. Pete to a DUI wolf pack prowling Pinellas County, check out the stories Florida Patch readers were sharing, reading and commenting on for the week of May 1.

Trayvon Martin To Graduate Posthumously From Miami-Area University

Trayvon Martin, the Florida teen whose 2012 shooting death sparked national outrage, will receive a posthumous degree later this month. Martin will receive a bachelor of science degree in aviation from Florida Memorial University. The unarmed teenager was gunned down by neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman, who was later acquitted.

Drug Crackdown: 13 Arrested In Tarpon Springs

The Tarpon Springs Police Department has announced 13 arrests following a joint operation between its officers and the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office’s Countywide Narcotics Task Force. The operation was staged over the past six months to crack down on illegal drug activity within the city limits. According to Tarpon Springs Police, law enforcement officers began conducting investigation-related arrests on April 27.

$56 Million In Cocaine Comes To St. Pete

Eight accused smugglers and an estimated 1,735 kilograms of cocaine are in federal custody thanks to the U.S. Coast Guard and its international partners in Operation Martillo. Launched initially in 2012, Operation Martillo is an ongoing international effort meant to staunch the flow of illegal narcotics from Central America.

Florida Drinking Water 2nd Worst In Country: Study

Florida is the second worst violator of the federal Safe Drinking Water Act based on population, coming in behind Texas. An estimated 7.5 million people in Florida were potentially exposed to unsafe drinking water in 2015, according to a study released by the Natural Resources Defense Council. In its May 2017 report, the nonprofit environmental organization focused on violations of the Safe Drinking Water Act reported in 2015. The nonprofit's report calls the federal act “one of our bedrock environmental laws.”

Photo credit: AP Photo/David Goldman, File