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Vessels seized; owner arrested
By AMY WIMMER, Times Staff Writer
MADEIRA BEACH -- Fly-n-High Parasail and Waverunners took its customers on thrill rides even though it had no liability insurance policy to protect them, officials said Tuesday. And teenagers were allowed to rent personal watercraft, officials said, without taking a state-required boating safety test. "All this adds up to a high public risk," said Gary Morse, a spokesman for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, which arrested the Fly-n-High owner Tuesday and seized the company's 16 personal watercraft and one 18-foot runabout. Thomas R. Barrett, 60, of 780 119th Ave., was charged with two felony counts of using a false name in application for title or registration and one misdemeanor count for failure to register a fictitious name with the state. Those charges might not have been pursued, Morse acknowledged, if the Fly-n-High had not also been accused of more serious infractions, such as not carrying liability insurance and issuing temporary boater certificates without making recipients take a boating safety test. As a result of those infractions, the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission issued citations in October and took away the business' ability to administer the boating safety course, effectively preventing it from renting to adults ages 18 to 21. It was the second time law enforcement officials have descended on John's Pass Village in a week to seize property. The FBI and IRS seized a Stardancer casino boat Jan. 14 as part of an investigation into its finances. Similar to last week's bust, visitors to the tourist shopping strip gathered as Fish and Wildlife and Pinellas County Sheriff's Office vehicles surrounded the parasail business, followed by media trucks. Some tourists snapped photos and waited with the media for Fish and Wildlife officials to bring Barrett outside in handcuffs. "It's a joke," Barrett said when he emerged from his office, led by Fish and Wildlife authorities. "This is what we pay out taxes for, so they can harass you." The investigation of Fly-n-High began Aug. 18 when Treasure Island Marine Officer Kenny Hilland stopped four rented personal watercrafts from Fly-n-High for speeding in a minimum wake zone. The riders, all underage males, should have been required to take a boater education course before renting the watercraft. But the education certificates the riders presented to the officer had women's names on them.
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From the Times South Pinellas desks |
