Big Island man steals, crashes luxury yacht
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - A Big Island man is charged with felony theft after stealing an almost 50-foot yacht from Honokohau Harbor Saturday.
Richard Sherwood apparently has no sailing experience. Harbor Police say he broke into the boat, named the 'Corsaire' and just coasted for almost 3 miles before hitting the reef.
"We are devastated," says Laura Mascari. Mascari and her husband, Leonard own a charter company named after the luxury yacht which is now resting on it's side on the reef, the hull is broken. Leonard is spending the next few days dismantling the boat he's had for almost 20 years.
"It's like a family member," says Laura. The couple's nine year old daughter grew up on the boat. Laura's Facebook page has dozens of pictures of the girl posing on the 'Corsaire'.
The Mascaris started their tour company about a year ago, taking visitors whale watching and snorkeling. Business has picked up recently and there were eight upcoming tours. Those have now been canceled, and money has been refunded.
"This is the life long plan, it's taken us 15 years to get here," says Laura who doesn't think the family will invest in another boat anytime soon.
"I think we're done. This devastated us. We are not interested in buying another yacht."
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