Bradenton Beach police arrested a 27-year-old man for stealing a surfboard — an open case since December 2017 — the same day he was arrested for battery to a woman on a boat near Cortez.
Detective Sgt. Lenard Diaz arrested Joseph Gaston May 10 for the burglary and theft in Bradenton Beach. Gaston lives on a boat in Sarasota Bay near Longboat Key, Diaz said.
The detective had been searching for a suspect since a man in the 100 block of Gulf Drive South reported an unknown person entered his garage and stole three surfboards.
As coincidence would have it, at about the same time Diaz connected a pawn of one of the boards to Gaston— collecting evidence at the pawn shop — BBPD Steven Masi officer reported assisting a Manatee County sheriff’s deputy with apprehending a suspect in a battery investigation.
The U.S. Coast Guard and Officer Masi assisted MSCO in bringing Gaston to the 12500 block of Cortez Road West, where Diaz arrested him for the theft.
Gaston also is accused of pulling a woman by her feet from a boat at Annie’s Bait & Tackle, 4334 127th St. W., and then shoving her in the boat while it was tied to a dock near the Coast Guard station in Cortez, according to MCSO reports.
After BBPD gave Gaston his Miranda warnings, Gaston admitted to the surfboard theft and pawn, according to a police report.
Diaz suggested the burglary as well as theft charges to the state attorney’s office, which makes the charging decision.
As far as the two other surfboards, Diaz said one was found and another is missing. The recovered surfboards have been returned to the owner.
Gaston was transported to Manatee County jail and assigned a $2,000 bond on the battery and $9,000 for the burglary and theft. Gaston posted bond and was released.
Gaston’s arraignment on the BBPD case is set for 9 a.m. Friday, June 8, and an appearance on the MCSO charge is set for 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, June 12.
Court proceedings are held at the Manatee County Judicial Center, 1051 Manatee Ave. W., Bradenton.
