Homeless migrant busted for taking historic NYC fireboat on wild joyride: cops

[The Bobster]

Homeless migrant busted for taking historic NYC fireboat on wild joyride: cops

Juan Hernandez began his joyride around 2:30 a.m., using the now-privately owned John J. Harvey, cops and sources said.

nypost.com

Homeless migrant busted for taking historic NYC fireboat on wild joyride: cops​

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Published April 11, 2024, 4:08 p.m. ET










Now he’s up a creek.
A 22-year-old migrant was busted taking a historic fireboat on a wild journey down the Hudson River — before getting stuck and hopping onto a sailboat in Manhattan early Thursday, cops and sources said.
Juan Hernandez, who is homeless and hails from Ecuador, began his aquatic joyride on the former FDNY-owned John J. Harvey vessel at around 2:30 a.m., cops and other sources said.
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Juan Hernandez, 22, was charged with two counts of grand larceny auto in connection to a joyride with a historic FDNY boat, cops said. Obtained by the NY Post
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The 22-year-old allegedly stole the John J. Harvey vessel at 2:30 a.m. Thursday morning. Robert Miller

The alleged boat bandit untied ropes tethering the decommissioned, now-privately-owned 130-foot vessel to Pier 66 at West 27th Street in Chelsea and floated downstream, cops said.
He drifted aimlessly for about a half-hour then got stuck near Pier 64 at West 25th Street, according to police.
The sketchy skipper then jumped ship — plunging into the 46-degree water and swimming to land before jumping onto a 25-foot sailboat, cops and sources said.

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Hernandez tried to lower the sails of the second vessel, a J/80 sailboat owned by the Hudson River Community Sailing School, but failed, according to the sources.
He continued his bizarre odyssey by drifting for roughly for another half-hour to Pier 51, near Jane Street in the West Village, cops said.
Someone spotted him on board and called 911, police said.
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Hernandez allegedly jumped onto a sailboat owned by Hudson River Community Sailing School after getting stuck. Robert Miller
The NYPD’s Harbor Unit responded and boarded the boat, where they found Hernandez lying down on the ground, police said.
He was busted around 3:40 a.m. and charged with two counts of grand larceny auto, cops said.