
After being interrogated by police while on a boat, a guy from Florida, who went by the name “AJ,” dived into the water to escape, handing over his phone password.
Two Fish and Wildlife Commission officers pulled over a couple on a boat in April in the Key West area, not far from their house, on suspicion of code violations. Neither AJ nor his girlfriend had identification on them. The police discovered that the man’s buddy, Ethan, owned the modest 1970s Sea Nymph boat and had a number of violations.
In response to questions on any warrants he could have, AJ grew increasingly furious. His demeanor deteriorated further when his fiancée demanded his phone password so she could contact AJ’s supervisor. By claiming he was not in custody and was simply “in his backyard,” he asked the police what would happen if he jumped in the water and swam home, reminding them that without his ID, they couldn’t look up if he had any warrants.
The police informed him that if he were to swim away, he would face further first-degree charges on top of whatever problems he would have with his warrants after his identification was verified.
AJ dives off the boat. As he starts to swim away, his girlfriend’s cries for him to calm down and threats to leave the relationship have no effect.
He swims back to shore, taking seven minutes. When he reaches land he is arrested. His girlfriend, who doesn’t know how to pilot a boat, was stuck out in the water.
Over a million people have seen the viral YouTube clip that was published last month.
There is no word at this time about whether AJ’s girlfriend followed through on her threat to leave him.
There is no word on whether she is still stuck on the boat, either.