Accused Boat Thief Lands In Cold Water

PORT RICHEY, FL – Criminals caught in the act normally land in hot water, but that wasn’t quite the case Thursday morning in Port Richey.

According to the Port Richey Police Department, Jason Raymond Ewashko, 29, was attempting to drive off in a 40-foot sport fishing boat named “The Paladin” around 4:30 a.m. when he ran into some trouble.

“He accelerated and jumped the throttle forward and the boat took off and ran into the pylons,” Assistant Chief Bill Ferguson explained to Patch. The boat ultimately became lodged against another pylon and Ewashko “fell off the boat and into the Pithlachascottee River,” the agency reported in an email to media.

Police witnessed the folly in action as they had been called about a possible boat theft in progress behind the Seaside Inn, 5330 Treadway Drive, and arrived in time to watch The Paladin strike and snap the pylons, the email explained.

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Ewashko, of New Port Richey, managed to grab ahold of the boat and began yelling for help, police said.

Sgt. Michael Koch responded to the scene, assessed the situation and drove to a nearby dock to retrieve the Port Richey Police Department’s boat. Koch was initially concerned that Thursday morning’s rough waters would make deployment of the vessel unsafe, Ferguson told Patch.

“The water was bad,” Ferguson said, as were the waves and “the wind was really bad.”

Despite his reservations, Koch managed to rescue the man by maneuvering the police boat close to The Paladin and putting out a life pole, Ferguson said.

Ewashko was safely pulled out of the water and was checked out by the Port Richey Fire Department for possible hypothermia before being arrested on grand theft vessel charges, Ferguson said. The boat has an estimated value of $100,000, he added.

Ewashko had not yet been fully booked into the Pasco County Jail as of Wednesday afternoon.

As for Sgt. Koch’s water rescue, Ferguson said, “He did a good job and we’re proud of him.”

Photos of The Paladin courtesy of the Port Richey Police Department

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