Sailboat taken on joyride

Korry Zepik came across a startling scene Nov. 8 when he realized his sailboat was not connected to his anchor right off Lakeshore Park.

“I was quite surprised that it would have broken free,” said Zepik.

“I went out to my mooring buoy, and I didn't see any of the mooring gear hanging off of it.”

Zepik later found his vessel washed ashore over four kilometres away near Beachcomber Bay. When he stepped inside, he said that it looked like it had been ransacked.

“There was a kirpan knife laying on the seat, and the padlock had been cut with bolt cutters, my hatch was wide open, and the inside of the boat was trashed.”

Jamie Gibson with Stolen Boats Canada says that there has not been a recent increase in sailboat vandalism because many of these cases go unreported.

Gibson said sailboats are generally easier to break into because of the type of doors the boats use.

“It's basically an entryway down into the cabin,” he said.

“It’s usually wood, anyways, that slatted wood that can be broken out or the padlock can be easily defeated.”

According to Gibson, the most effective methods to keep your boat safe include removing sails and motors while the boat is not in use, keeping a GPS tracker on board at all times and keeping copies of all identification information.

“Target harden it and make it less of an invitation to somebody that's looking to take it,” said Gibson.

Zepik’s boat isn’t the only one that has been tampered with. Another sailboat parked beside his had its hatch left wide open, allowing rainwater to flood the boat.

“If there's my boat and another boat, then that's quite possible, maybe even likely, that somebody else will be,” said Zepik.

He said he has notified the RCMP about the situation, but the detachment has no record of it.

“I had a look at all the files which occurred on Lakeshore Road between September 1, 2024 to present and cannot find anything related to boats being vandalised and illegally lived in,” said Cpl. Tania Finn with the Vernon RCMP.