VERO BEACH — Vero Beach police have a mystery on their hands: A 28-foot sport fishing boat – rigged with extra drums of fuel – was discovered on the beach near the Seaquay area just before 7 a.m. Wednesday.
It’s unclear if the captain of the boat intentionally beached the boat and ran for cover or if the boat washed ashore on its own.
Special agents from U.S. Customs and Border Patrol were on the beach into the afternoon Wednesday and beach walkers tried without much luck to find out what was going on.
Police say they got the call at 6:52 a.m. and are hoping the public can fill in the blanks.
The 28-foot Baja Sport Fisherman with two Mercury outboard motors had four, 10-gallon drums of fuel in the stern of the boat – typically telltale signs of a drug-running boat or a boat expected to travel long distance for either sport fishing or smuggling people, according to law enforcement.
The problem is, said Officer John Morrison, there were no signs of any of those scenarios on the boat.
In fact there were few signs of much: Just a boat registered out of Delray Beach which as of 12:30 p.m. had not been reported stolen.
“No evidence of what it was out there for as far as fishing gear or drugs or refugees – just the boat – and we’re trying to figure out why it was there,” Morrison said. “If we found some open bales (of dope) or wrappings, then that would be different. But it is just sitting there.”
Police say in recent months they have investigated the theft of a boat and theft of some boat motors. Anyone with any information on the boat found on the beach is asked to call the Vero Beach Police Department at (772) 978-4600.