Two men arrested for boat burglary

Two mainland men were arrested Sunday for burglarizing and damaging a boat on Big Pine Key.

Ismael Perez Castineira, 28, of Miami, and Alain Oliva Perez, 19, of Hialeah, were both charged with burglary, possession of burglary tools and grand theft.

Lower Keys Deputy Michelle Swilley was called at 6:45 a.m. to Long Beach Road where witness out jogging reported seeing suspicious activity. The jogger saw two men working on a 25-foot Mako boat and leaving with the center console partially hanging out of the back of a dark colored sport-utility-vehicle.

The jogger said he believed the men would have left with the engine as well, but did not because they had been spotted. Sgt. David Lariz confirmed shortly thereafter he was on the south end of the Seven Mile Bridge with multiple vehicles and six people, two of whom were later determined to be suspects in the crime.

Swilley and Deputy Seth Hopp found soda boxes left on the boat and soda cans in the suspect vehicle had matching identification numbers. Manufacturers use those numbers to match cans to boxes during shipping.

Some people in the group said they were at the Seven Mile Bridge to go fishing when Castineira and Perez left. Both men returned with a center console containing the wheel and two electronics in the back of the SUV.

The owners of the boat, who live in Pompano Beach, but own property on Big Pine Key as well, said they wished to press charges.

Both men were taken to jail.

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