Captain Charged with Sinking Yacht for Insurance Money
May 22, 2012
Byline: Associated Press
MIAMI (AP) — A South Florida boat captain is facing grand theft charges for allegedly sinking an 80-foot yacht so he could collect the insurance money.
State Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater said May 10 that 49-year-old Robert Figueredo was arrested in the sinking of the yacht Star One off the Bahamas in 2009. The yacht was worth about $1.8 million.
Figueredo told authorities back in 2009 he had no idea who had taken the yacht from its Key Biscayne mooring. But Atwater said an ex-girlfriend told investigators Figueredo bragged about deliberately sinking the boat. The claim for loss went to Federated Insurance Co.
Figueredo faces a maximum 30-year prison sentence if convicted.
