NATION : Cubans Board U.S. Fishing Boat 12 Miles Off Coast, Order It Into Port
A Cuban gunboat fired warning shots at the U.S. fishing boat Don Pepo this morning 12 miles off the Cuban coast, boarded it and ordered it into port, the Coast Guard said.
Lt. Jeff Karonis said the Cubans boarded the boat, operated by Mike Frye and Claude Pawell of St. Augustine, Fla., at 4:50 a.m. Crowely Marine of Jacksonville notified the Coast Guard they had monitored a Mayday call from the 66-foot fishing boat.
The Coast Guard radioed the Don Pepo and the crew said the Cuban navy ship had fired warning shots and told them to follow the gunboat to the Cuban port of Cayo Moa. Karonis said the Miami Coast Guard lost radio contact moments later and did not know if they had arrived at the port.
The Coast Guard said Frye and Pawell were en route to Cartagena, Colombia, from Tampa when they were boarded by the Cubans.
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