Crime

Drunk Cruise Passenger Who Dropped Anchor in the Middle of the Caribbean Pleads Guilty & Faces Up To 20 Years in Jail

Drunk Cruise Passenger Who Dropped Anchor in the Middle of the Caribbean Pleads Guilty & Faces Up To 20 Years in JailThe U.S. District Court in Tampa did not find Rick Ehlert’s stunt on a Holland America Line last November amusing. The California man will plead guilty and now faces a maximum of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for releasing the ship’s 18-ton stern anchor in the middle of the Caribbean Sea as the 1,950-passenger vessel traveled from Costa Maya, Mexico to Tampa, Florida.

Federal prosecutors in Tampa said Friday that 45-year-old Ehlert pleaded guilty to one count of attempting to damage a maritime facility.  Authorities say a surveillance video shows Ehlert entering a restricted area and dropping the 18-ton stern anchor of the MS Ryndam on Nov. 27, 2010.

“The deployment mechanism is quite complex and required tools, including a wrench, to complete. The process took Ehlert approximately 12 minutes,” the plea agreement notes.

When confronted by authorities, Ehlert told them he was drunk at the time. He also said the cruise ship’s anchor system was similar to the system on his own 50-foot boat.

Investigators say the Holland America ship avoided damage because the anchor didn’t hit the deep sea floor.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.

Comments (127)

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  • Flag Raiser
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 10:53pm

    Keel Haul the sucker.

    Report Post »  
    • 408 CheyTac
      Posted on August 20, 2011 at 11:10pm

      Cat O’ Nine Tails first!

      Report Post »  
    • silentwatcher
      Posted on August 20, 2011 at 11:36pm

      Make the dummy walk the ‘gang plank.’

      Report Post »  
    • Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra
      Posted on August 20, 2011 at 11:43pm

      He will take the plank in prison….Oh Andy.

      Report Post » Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra  
    • AOL_REFUGEE
      Posted on August 21, 2011 at 12:05am

      Well? Did he get his drinks on the ship? If so, he’ll get off.

      Report Post » AOL_REFUGEE  
    • Chuck Stein
      Posted on August 21, 2011 at 12:51am

      Shave his belly with a rusty razor (early in the morning).

      Report Post »  
    • Worldsapart
      Posted on August 21, 2011 at 6:40am

      Chuck, I think you meant erlie in the morning.;)

      Report Post »  
    • yougottabekidding
      Posted on August 21, 2011 at 8:10am

      He should wear a tee shirt that says Sea Shepard. They can legally put human life in danger on the high seas. He was just protecting all those fish that were endangered.

      Report Post »  
    • Secret Squirrel
      Posted on August 21, 2011 at 10:18am

      .
      20 yrs?
      Hell, you couldn’t get 20 yrs. if you murdered nuns in a convent.

      Do we think this guy is a danger to society?
      Should have been 2 yrs.
      Meanwhile, we’ll have to release a mother stabber
      and father raper to make room for this jerk.

      “Top down, bottom up, inside out.”

      Report Post » Secret Squirrel  
    • yougottabekidding
      Posted on August 21, 2011 at 10:51am

      But you could if you murdered one illegal immigrant.

      Report Post »  
    • obroen
      Posted on August 21, 2011 at 7:10pm

      Up the old shaft with a red hot poker aarrrggggggg

      Report Post »  
  • Slowman101
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 10:44pm

    To take 12 minutes to do it means he did it intentionally. He had malicious intent. Drunk or not.

    Report Post »  
    • flevan
      Posted on August 21, 2011 at 1:03am

      I completely agree.

      Report Post »  
    • ree758
      Posted on August 21, 2011 at 2:55am

      How did he get Access,The Cruise company should be a little responsible

      Report Post »  
    • Secret Squirrel
      Posted on August 21, 2011 at 10:20am

      .
      Was he wearing a tee shirt that said,
      “I went on a Caribbean cruise and all I got was 20 yrs?”

      Report Post » Secret Squirrel  
  • GodsDotr
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 10:38pm

    I hope this guy gets the help he needs before he really hurts someone.

    Report Post »  
  • OlefromMN
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 10:17pm

    One thing I noticed is that he owns a 50 footer of his own. He has assets that the government will be going after.

    Puts a whole new twist on “anchors away my friends…” Doesn’t it?

    Report Post » OlefromMN  
    • single stack
      Posted on August 21, 2011 at 9:47am

      Actually, the correct term is “anchor’s aweigh” and means that the anchor has been raised off the bottom and is being hauled to the surface.

      Report Post »  
    • RedMage
      Posted on August 21, 2011 at 11:53am

      Single Stack, you’re correct in your remarks, however when the government takes your stuff, it‘s ’away’, doncha think? Yah, for good.

      Report Post » RedMage  
  • RA0725
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 10:11pm

    If there had been any structure, a rise in the seabed, and that anchor caught, seems like it could have caused a lot of damage. Have him walk the plank. Aaaarrrrr.

    Report Post »  
    • sissykatz
      Posted on August 20, 2011 at 10:35pm

      There is no way they will sentence this man to 20 yrs. The most hardened criminals don’t get that much. I think a hugh fine would be plenty. I do not agree with what he did by any means, it was completely stupid and dangerous. But prison won’t “rehabilitate” him….. It is not likely this would ever happen again to anyone. First of all Looks like Cruise line holds some responsibility for having access to something that could be that dangerous.

      Report Post »  
    • Patriot Z
      Posted on August 20, 2011 at 10:44pm

      sissy…i agree a big fine and some serious public embarrasment, but 20 yrs is over the top…the walking the plank sounds good heheh. this is when creative punishments like sandwitch boards etc work the best, its worse than the fine

      Report Post » Patriot Z  
    • corbecket
      Posted on August 20, 2011 at 11:37pm

      “It is not likely this would ever happen again to anyone. ”

      Oh, I beg to disagree. It’s been some 30 years since it happened, but we were approaching the dock in Cozumel, in a cruise ship, and they managed to drop the anchor “accidently”. We ended up at the dock with the anchor chain (and anchor” dragged behind us for quite a distance on the seabed.

      The Captain, had the crew out on the bow of the ship chewing them out for quite a while. So you see, it can/has happened in the past. I can’t say that our crew was drunk, but I do know that the ship later sank out in the South China Sea a few years later. Fortunately, there was no loss of life, and it wasn’t an anchor chain that ended the ship.

      It’s best never to assume that something “would never happen again to anyone”, because it will.

      Report Post » corbecket  
    • JJ Coolay
      Posted on August 21, 2011 at 1:43am

      How about some kind of locking system on the “restricted area” doors?

      Report Post » JJ Coolay  
  • Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 10:10pm

    Wow, if this drunk McGuiver can do that when completely wasted, I wonder what damage he can do when sober. Don’t let him near the Oval office, he might turn the Jobs machine back on.

    Report Post » Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra  
  • chump
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 10:05pm

    I’ve never been that drunk. Sounds like a light-weight.

    Report Post »  
  • 101
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:57pm

    “WHY was a drunk fool able to access and operate the mechanism for releasing a cruise ship anchor without being apprehended? Since it can safely be assumed that a certain percentage of cruise ship passengers (and crew, from what I’ve heard from people who should know, but that’s another story) are going to be in various states of intoxication at any given time, I think it’s rather negligent to have major control mechanisms for the ship that easily accessible and unguarded.”

    After reading this I agree: The cruise line is negligent having major control mechanisms for the ship that easily accessible and unguarded.

    Report Post »  
    • Dinkiecb
      Posted on August 20, 2011 at 11:29pm

      I kinda was wondering why he would even have access to supposedly “secure” areas of the ship in the first place.

      Report Post »  
    • NAVYGUYGRAY
      Posted on August 21, 2011 at 3:23am

      Ultimately, no matter how much a person drinks does not diminish their degree of responsibility. He put everyone’s life in danger onboard that ship….

      Report Post »  
    • SLOWBIDEN
      Posted on August 22, 2011 at 1:01pm

      If we didn‘t have morons and thieves we wouldn’t need locks

      Report Post »  
  • Shrugged
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:50pm

    If that anchor had grabbed the ocean floor while it was under power, the inertia of the ship being suddenly yanked by a secured achor could have broken the chain from its mounting on the deck, but more critically, caused such a jerk in the ship that people would have fallen – possibly overboard, down steps, over railings if there was an atrium, off their chairs and off their feet. Breakables, dishes, glasses, food, anything not nailed down would have become a flying object – i.e. glass shards. There would most certainly have been serious injuries and possibly deaths. This guy would be lucky to get only 20 years. If this had happened, he would have been sued for everything he would ever own, and receive criminal charges – and possibly murder or manslaughter charges.

    Picture a school bus traveling down the road at 30 miles an hour and hitting brick wall that it breaks through before coming to a stop. Kids would be flying through the air. That’s the kind of action that could have happened on this ship.

    Report Post »  
  • RightPolitically
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:46pm

    Lot’s of people go on cruises to drink like fish. Maybe it would have been better had he thrown himself overboard instead of the anchor. Demon booze strikes again. He’ll likely have lots of down time to think about that anchor once they slam him shut in the joint!

    Report Post » RightPolitically  
  • Oddness
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:43pm

    Ok Ricky your up… Truth or Dare?

    Report Post » Oddness  
  • UBETHECHANGE
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:40pm

    What do you expect from A Kalifornia commie?

    Report Post »  
  • MrButcher
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:40pm

    What?

    No one wants to blame his actions on socialists/marxists/communists/muslims/liberals/unionists/atheists/satanists/secularists/palestiniansetc?

    Fran Fox-Piven and Van Jones said this would happen. Top down, bottom up, inside out and anchors away?

    Cheers

    Report Post » MrButcher  
    • DSN397
      Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:54pm

      MRBUTCHER are you so blind that you do not see the truth. You fool, it was Bush’s fault.

      Report Post »  
  • OlefromMN
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:35pm

    I have been guilty of shenanigans in my life, but this guy raised the bar! Dropping the anchor on a cruise ship while it is in motion? I don’t know whether to bow to him or slug him in the face.

    Report Post » OlefromMN  
    • OlefromMN
      Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:54pm

      A typical line used in upper midwest stories of stupid winter traffic stunts is “Hold my beer and watch this”. This idiot took it seriously.

      Report Post » OlefromMN  
    • NAVYGUYGRAY
      Posted on August 21, 2011 at 3:25am

      Same phrase in the south for the Darwin winners…..

      Report Post »  
  • ProPatriaVigilans
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:34pm

    I’m wondering how an anchor could damage the ship if it hit bottom? 20 years seems a little excessive, the lockerby (misspelled) bomber didn’t get that. Do american courts have jurisdiction on a ship at sea?

    Report Post » ProPatriaVigilans  
    • MODEL82A1
      Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:40pm

      The anchor does not damage the vessel by hitting bottom, it damages the vessel when the anchor is deployed when the vessel is under way and the anchor rode (that is the line or chain attached to the anchor) becomes tangled in the ship’s wheels (propellers).

      Report Post » MODEL82A1  
    • Stoic one
      Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:43pm

      UM try wrapping a heavy duty chain to your axle and have say thirty foot of play with an anchor attached. no drive through the city of your choice and see how far ya get.

      Report Post » Stoic one  
    • 187NCO
      Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:50pm

      Jurisdiction falls on the nation the ship is flagged under, unless they are in the territorial waters of another nation, then it depends on what treaties are in effect.

      Report Post »  
    • Mateytwo Barreett
      Posted on August 21, 2011 at 7:45am

      The differences are that the ship was bigger than the plane,
      There was apparently little or no damage to the ship
      There were no injuries on the ship
      The perp on the boat is probably not a muslim
      Nope he gets the big fine, and the 20,but on probation, That way they can keep the dough dripping.

      Report Post » Mateytwo Barreett  
    • yougottabekidding
      Posted on August 21, 2011 at 8:57am

      MODEL82A1
      What?

      Report Post »  
    • CaptDick
      Posted on August 21, 2011 at 9:25am

      A chartered catamaran in St Marten in Oct 2009 had an inexperienced skipper that dropped anchor in Marigot harbor and immediately began to back down on the anchor at about 2000rpm. Yanked the windlass right out of the bow of the boat. Dropping an anchor at speed is a major stupid thing, see Pirates of the Carribbean “club haul” their square rig boat, ie drop anchor at full sail to turn the boat and bring their guns to bear on the Black Pearl. Great in an action movie and stupid in real life.

      Report Post » CaptDick  
    • Yorktown1781
      Posted on August 22, 2011 at 3:26am

      Naval architect here! If the anchor drops freely (continuously accelerating) the length of the chain in deep water, something WILL break!!! The “bitter end” could pull out some of the ship’s structure when the chain becomes taught. Anything that pulls out could reasonably be expected to severely damage the anchor windlass. In the best case the chain would break and the anchor be lost. Otherwise it would be impossible to pull it back into the ship with the damaged and inoperable windlass. Chain would be dangling out of the stern waiting to foul something, like a propeller or rudder. If the anchor should hit bottom with the ship moving at full speed the results cold be as bad or worse. The damage possibilities are almost endless and virtually all result in real peril to the ship, crew and passengers.

      Report Post »  
  • UlyssesP
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:32pm

    Imagine if that would have hit bottom as the ship was moving…dangerous….Cool!!

    Report Post » UlyssesP  
  • salvawhoray
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:32pm

    he was better off throwing a baby overboard.

    Report Post » salvawhoray  
  • MODEL82A1
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:25pm

    I dropped a Deuce on a cruise ship in the Caribbean once… the repercussions were minimal.

    Report Post » MODEL82A1  
  • inferno
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:21pm

    Tie him to thre anchor the next tme it’s time to drop it !

    Report Post »  
  • Elena2010
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:18pm

    Twenty years in prison? Rapists and pedophiles don’t get 20 years in prison. OK — he was stupid, pay the fine and call it even. Put the idiot on a no-sail list!

    Report Post » Elena2010  
    • walkwithme1966
      Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:23pm

      Wow – 20 years in prison for dropping an anchor – that didn’t hurt anything or any one!!
      http://wp.me/pYLB7-1vV

      Report Post » walkwithme1966  
    • SHvnDave
      Posted on August 20, 2011 at 10:48pm

      Oh, Puleease! The man owns a 50 footer (at a cost of $20,000 per foot). Do you really think he will do time? Maybe 4 hours of community service. This is the American System of Justice – remember?

      Report Post » SHvnDave  
  • barber2
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:16pm

    Thanks Blaze for 3 things I can think of: one, you update your news items frequently; two, you include all sorts of news items like this one about a drunk who caused a Cruise Line/passengers major mayhem which really is an economic issue because of his stupid behavior; and three, you are not the usual mouth piece for the “progressive” Write -In crowd which fills the MSM. It is refreshing to see the views of fellow, rational Americans who are tired of being “played” by the bucks of Big Daddy Soros who has spent zillions trying to “change” / influence the American public. We aren’t buying what you ( apparently a communist/socialist whatever) are selling to destroy capitalism! We are those who were educated before the Dumbing of America in the 1960′s. Thanks again Blaze.

    Report Post »  
  • banjarmon
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:09pm

    Keel haul the man and let him go!!

    Report Post » banjarmon  
  • Secessionista
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:09pm

    Nice job Holland America – do you leave the bilge doors unsecured as well?

    Report Post » Secessionista  
  • Secessionista
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:08pm

    Remind me never to sail with Holland America.

    Report Post » Secessionista  
  • RepubliCorp
    Posted on August 20, 2011 at 9:05pm

    Next time, Lock The Door!

    Report Post » RepubliCorp  
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