FLORIDA KEYS, Fla. – Two boats and fishing equipment have been reported stolen in Monroe County over the past few days, the Sheriff’s Office reports.
The two boats were stolen sometime between Thursday night and Friday morning in Marathon.
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One of the vessels, a 1987 Wellcraft V20 with a 225 horsepower two-stroke Mercury engine on it, was taken from behind a house on Harbor Drive in Marathon.
The owner of the boat told deputies that he was working on the boat on Thursday and last saw it at 7 p.m. By 7 a.m., the boat was gone.
The second stolen boat, a 20-foot-long Twin Vee Outrageous with a yellow Bimini top and two 60 horsepower four-stroke Mercury engines, was taken from a condominium complex on Anglers Drive, deputies said.
The owner also told deputies that he’d been working on the boat the night before and discovered that it was missing at about 7 a.m. the Friday.
In both cases, the owners said they left the keys in the boat, deputies said.
In addition to the stolen boats, deputies said a large amount of fishing equipment was reported stolen from a boat kept on a trailer at a house on Lobster Lane in Key Largo.
The owner told deputies he last saw his equipment, which included rods, reels and tackles valued at more than $2,000, on the boat on Tuesday, and when he checked on it on Friday, it was gone.
The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office released a statement Sunday reminding residents that with an “influx of people to the Keys, thieves also come here; they are looking out for people who are not mindful of their valuables and property.”
Deputies are reminding residents to make sure fishing equipment and any other valuables are secured and to always park boats in well-lighted areas.
"Most of the time, thieves are looking for an easy target. If your property is not easy to steal, they will move on to somewhere less difficult," the release said.
Anyone with information about these thieves is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-346-TIPS.