Maharashtra: Drunk takes fishing boat on joyride, drives cops nuts

The helper of a missing fishing trawler for which the Indian Coast Guard and the marine police had deployed a helicopter and a speedboat was on a joyride in the sea under the influence of alcohol said cops Local fisherfolk found the boat anchored in Shrivardhan taluka of Raigad district and alerted its owner Peter DambarThe trawler belonged to fisherman Peter Dambar who filed a complaint with the police and the customs authorities on Wednesday saying his boat Sav Pedru was stolen on October 31 from Pachu Bandar in Vasai West where it had been anchored His helper Vikas Dhangda who was on the fishing vessel was also untraceable The police filed an FIR on ThursdayAlso read Maharashtra Farmers take out rally against bulk drug park project in RaigadHelper Akash who was nabbed from RaigadIn his statement to the Vasai police Vikas Dhangda said that he was drunk and was chasing the lighthouses while riding on the seaThe Indian Coast Guard and marine police had stepped up coastal patrolling after the complaint Since itrsquos a coastal theft the marine police are also probing into the complaint The coast guard and the marine police had deployed a helicopter and a speedboat to find the trawlerHelper Akash in pink Tshirt in RaigadThe government has been giving much thrust to coastal security particularly after the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks The attackers had hijacked an Indian boat the Kuber to reach the cityThe boat Sav Pedru anchored at Pachu Bandar area of Vasai West and Vikas a native of Palghar taluka was sleeping in itPeter Dambar boat owner PicsHanif PatelDambar had asked the fishing community for help after his trawler went missing and circulated its photos across Maharashtra Gujarat and Goa A local social activist Satish Gamjya told midday that the boat was found anchored in Shrivardhan taluka of Raigad districtGamjya said that fisherfolkrsquos leader Philip Mastan received a call from fisherman Ravi Dhanu from the Cuffe Parade area ldquoDhanu had seen the photograph of the missing boat on WhatsApp He had seen a similar looking boat anchored in Raigad district He informed Mastan and I also learnt about itrdquo he addedldquoI immediately rushed to the Vasai police station along with Dambar Senior Inspector Kalyanrao Karpe promptly acted on Thursday and deployed one inspector who contacted Dighi Sagri cops who confirmed that Sav Pedru is anchored in their jurisdictionrdquo Gamjya saidldquoOne fishing net costs around Rs 70000 The boat owner had stored grocery items for daily use in the sea and ice cubes to store fish The poor fisherman is worried as the boat is his only source of incomerdquo Gamjya saidActivist Akash had joined Dambarrsquos trawler recently ldquoPreviously he Akash worked as a helper in south Mumbairdquo he saidDambar said ldquoWe were about to venture into the sea All the expensive 25 fishing nets 200 litres of diesel and ice in bulk to store fish had been kept on the boat Akash was sleeping in the boat which we had anchored at Pachu BandarrdquoldquoI got to know about it theft on November 1 when neighbouring fishermen told me that they saw my boat venturing into the seardquo he saidDambar thanked the police and the fisherfolk for helping him find the missing trawler The price of the fishing boat is Rs 35 lakhRs 40 lakhAn officer from Vasai police station said ldquoWe have taken the missing boat and the helper in our custody and they are being brought to Vasai from Raigad district The FIR has been registered under IPC Section 379 theft on the complaint of the boat ownerrdquoNov 2Day the helper took the trawler on joyrideRs 40lApprox cost of a fishing boat