Caught on camera: man steals boat on Fort Myers Beach dock

Reporter: Emma Heaton Writer: Nicholas Karsen
Published: Updated:
boat theft
Credit: Lisa Difilippo

A man was caught on camera stealing a boat at the Boardwalk Caper on Fort Myers Beach. 

A WINK News viewer submitted a video tip of an unknown man unmooring a white and light blue 2018 Robalo Cayman 246 SD and casting away on it, early Thursday morning.

Lisa Difilippo was going to take her brand new baby boy out on their boat for the first time, but she woke up to find it stolen right off her private dock on Fort Myers Beach.

“We were able to capture the thief live as they drove over in a kayak, hopped on the boat, started it,” Difilippo said.

She said she and her husband saw the man pulled up to her private dock at boardwalk caper on Fort Myers Beach in a kayak, which is how he made it to the boat.

“He knew what he was doing. He knew how to navigate through the posts and how to get the thing going and knew how to maneuver the wheel. He got out of here pretty quickly with it,” Difilippo said.

She was asked if she and her husband tried to find the suspect.

“We did as soon as we could, but we have two little ones,” she said.

Two little ones. Big sister Everly and her new baby boy Bryson, whom she planned to take out on the boat this weekend. The family’s first gulf venture in six months and Bryson’s first boating day.

“He took a big piece of our heart. This was what we did as a family. We put so much of our love and our monetary ability into that boat, and it’s devastating for us,” Difilippo said.

After the devastation of Hurricane Ian, Difilippo said she and her family have once again been victimized.

“It was sad to see that we not only have to look out for things like natural disasters, but we also have to look to our left and right for our own neighbors,” she said.

If you recognize this person or have any information regarding this theft, contact the Lee County Sheriff’s Office here. OR If you have seen them, contact SWFL Crime Stoppers at 1-800-780-TIPS (8477) or submit a tip online

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