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Man Jailed For Dropping Anchor On Cruise While Drunk

March 9, 2012 by · Comments Off on Man Jailed For Dropping Anchor On Cruise While Drunk 

Man Jailed For Dropping Anchor On Cruise While Drunk, A California man was sentenced in Florida this week to two months in prison and house arrest after he drunkenly deployed the anchor of a Holland America cruise ship while the vessel was underway.

According to reports, Rick Ehlert, after a long night of drinking on Holland America’s MS Ryndam in November 2010, snuck into the cruise ships control room and released the 18-ton stern anchor which brought vessel, traveling at 18 knots at the time, to a sudden stop.

Luckily for prosecutors, the whole thing was caught on the ships surveillance camera leaving little doubt as to the identity of the perp. A federal judge sentenced Ehlert to four months incarceration – two months to be served in a federal prison and two months of home confinement – followed by three years of probation, a $7,500 fine and alcohol abuse classes.

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