‘Never heard anything like this.’ How a stolen shrimp boat ended up on an SC sandbar
Charlie Werner left his shrimp boat alone for about 15 hours on Halloween weekend, but it was enough time for the vessel to go missing, stolen in the dead of night.
“Never heard anything like this,” he said. “Maybe a joyride, but never someone actually stealing one to get somewhere.”
While it’s not uncommon for boats to be stolen for late night joyride, Werner said he and other boaters he knows have never heard of a shrimp ship to be stolen considering how hard they can be to pilot.
“Most (boats) are returned after a joyride,” he said. “This one wasn’t returned.”
Werner discovered his boat, the Lila Lee, missing from the Marlin Quay Marina midday on Oct. 31, and camera footage later showed a man hop from another boat into his before taking off about midnight.
He reported the 40-foot boat missing to police. He worried he might never see it again.
“There was always a really bad feeling in the back of my mind that somebody’s going to take it, disassemble it pretty much and then try to sink the boat, so there’s no evidence,” Werner said.
But, with help from the Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office, the Coast Guard and his brother and fellow fisherman Tommy Werner, the boat was quickly found Sunday stuck on a sandbar near Murrells Inlet.
Werner said rough seas and poor handling likely caused the boat to stall and drift in the water.
It’s still where they found it. A company is now working on digging it out, Werner said, and he’s sure that the $75,000 boat likely has somewhat significant damage.
“There’s definitely damage done to it, but the extent of it is unknown at this point,” Werner said.
Three days after finding the boat, the sheriff’s office put out a wanted poster for Daniel Connor Janowski, 28. Police arrested him Thursday in connection to the theft of the Lila Lee and for possession of a stolen vehicle, which was found in the parking lot of the same marina the boat was taken from, according to official reports.
Shrimp Season
Fishing is a family business for Werner. He’s been shrimping for eight years and his brother Tommy Werner owns a fishing charter company, Outlaw Fishing Charters.
Charlie Werner has had the Lila Lee for six years now.
Werner only lost his boat for a little over a day, but the damage caused by the theft could go on for much longer.
October, November and December are prime shrimping months, and Werner said it’s one of his main livelihoods. He uses the boat anywhere from one to two times a week, but sometimes will take it out for four days at a time during this season.
Losing the boat for even one day can cost Werner more than $1,000 in profits. Depending on the damage to the Lila Lee, though, and how long it takes to fix, his losses could be much more severe.
For now, Werner said his main priority is getting the boat off land and back to the marina, where he can assess damage and figure out what needs to be fixed.
“I’m ready to go back to work, for sure,” he said. “I’m eager to get off land. It’s time to go to work instead of sitting around. Normally, we work very hard right now.”
Repairs could cost thousands, and Werner already faces some expenses related to the theft. Salvaging the boat from the sandbar is a $6,000-$10,000 endeavor.
But, Werner doesn’t have to get through this challenging time on his own. From the moment the Lila Lee went missing, dozens of fellow community members and fishermen began checking on him and keeping an eye out for the vessel.
“Very, very big support on everything, the community showed more support than I could ever have imagine,” he said. “The Georgetown County Sheriff’s Department did an exceptional job” in finding the boat.
And to help with costs, his deckhand Alex Hrycak set up a GoFundMe for the boat. So far, 35 people donated $2,435 to the fundraiser, putting it more than 20% of the way toward its $15,000 goal as of Thursday evening.
“Just trying to get back on the water so we can start selling fresh shrimp again to the local market,” Werner said.
This story was originally published November 6, 2020 at 5:00 AM with the headline "‘Never heard anything like this.’ How a stolen shrimp boat ended up on an SC sandbar."
