Boater In St. Croix Yacht Crash Had Arrest Warrant For DWI

WASHINGTON COUNTY, MN — Authorities in the east Twin Cities metro were woken up around 2:51 a.m Sunday to respond to a single boat crash on the St. Croix River near the city of Bayport. At that time, it was determined that one adult male and one adult female were aboard the boat at the time of the accident.

The passenger who was identified at the time of the accident was identified as Kristin Erickson, a 35-year-old female from Minneapolis. The boat took on water and was partially submerged. The adult female made it to shore and was uninjured, authorities said.

The Washington County Sheriff’s Office began conducting a search for the adult male, both in the water at the accident site and on land.

But after an entire day of searching, the missing man’s attorney phoned authorities to tell them that boater Jason Elgersma, a 36-year-old from Minneapolis, was alive and well, the Pioneer Press reported:

The search had been for naught.

On Tuesday, law enforcement officials and city officials were expressing outrage at the situation and tabulating the cost of the rescue-and-recovery effort.

Bayport Fire Chief Al Eisinger said he was rousted out of bed at 2:58 a.m. Sunday to respond to the call.

“The (guys) are just very upset,” he said. “You have the emotional trauma because you don’t really know what you’re going to find out there. … Shame on them, especially given what we found out later. If they had been truthful with us, we wouldn’t have had to activate everybody out.”

Elgersma had an outstanding arrest warrant for not appearing for a probation violation hearing in connection with a 2015 DWI conviction, according to authorities.

Reach much more at the Pioneer Press.

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