Apparently Stolen From Dana Point : Vandalized Boat Found Adrift

A 50-foot power boat, apparently stolen from its slip in Dana Point Harbor, was found heavily vandalized and drifting helplessly Thursday morning about a mile offshore from South Laguna, Orange County sheriff’s investigators said.

The vessel, Bravado, valued at about $125,000, may have been taken from the harbor Wednesday afternoon, according to Sheriff’s Lt. Robert Rivas.

He said he was told that the owner, Roger Allen Cumin of San Clemente, was on a hunting trip in Washington state.

Harbor Patrol deputies from Dana Point, alerted by lobster fishermen who saw the boat about 8:30 a.m., its stern low in the water and no one aboard, said that most of the windows in the main cabin had been smashed and a foot-square hole chopped in the foredeck in an apparent effort to sink it. But it still was afloat late Thursday.

“An undetermined amount of electronic gear had been removed,” Rivas said. “At this time, we can only assume the vandals got ashore by means of some small boat they found aboard the big one.”

The vessel was drifting toward the rocky shoreline, so officers got aboard and released the anchor.

A 41-foot Coast Guard patrol boat from Long Beach arrived on the scene about noon Thursday. Petty Officer Charles Emelton said it was prepared to stand by the derelict all night to prevent other boats from colliding with it.

Rivas said a commercial salvage vessel will tow the battered yacht in to Dana Point this morning.

Although the vessel appeared to be in a precarious position, the Coast Guard said it seemed to be staying afloat thanks to airtight compartments.