Police believe a suspected boat burglar was a slippery fish.
The July 20 Islander Streetlife report stated: July 4, 600 block of Key Royale, boat burglary. A white male in his 30s in a white 16-foot flat-bottom boat was reported near a 33-foot boat that had its window broken and wires cut to five electronics devices.
Overlooked early on, however, was a crucial piece of evidence — a dead catfish.
Barbara Rezac of Bradenton had been watching the home and dock on Key Royale for boat owner Ilona Kerin when she saw a broken windshield on her Pro-line boat. Rezac reported the damage and what she thought to be missing electronics from the boat.
Kerin sent son Todd Kerin to check on the alleged burglary and he determined the electronics were stored in the home.
About a week later, Holmes Beach Police Officer Steve Ogline spoke to the Key Royale owner.
“The only thing we can think of is that somebody vandalized the window or it was this catfish,” Ogline said.
While Ogline didn’t see the catfish, Kerin and other witnesses told him it was on the boat deck, looking as if a bird may have dropped it there. The fish, in turn, bounced up and broke the window.
“It’s the only thing that makes sense,” Ogline said.
Two years ago, the owner had boat parts stolen. Though that burglary remains unsolved, the July 4 caper ended with swift justice.
Kerin called the fish “the bird’s hor d’oeurve.”
“It is a good ending because it’s a lot better to have a broken window instead of all the electronics stolen,” Ogline said.
— Kathy Prucnell