SEATTLE (AP) A sex offender who authorities say managed to steal one of the boats used for Seattle-to-Canada ferry service had his bail set at $200,000 as company officials reviewed security procedures to try to prevent trespassers from getting on board the vessels in the future.
"We were very, very fortunate this individual did not run into a state ferry or grain ship out by the grain terminal," Clipper Vacations CEO Darrell Bryan said. "It was a hell of a wake-up call."
Samuel Kenneth McDonough was arrested by a police team that boarded a Victoria Clipper on Sunday, seven hours after the ship motored away and drifted in Elliott Bay. McDonough, 33, was jailed for investigation of burglary, reckless endangerment, malicious mischief, and an outstanding warrant for failure to register as a sex offender.
A King County judge set his bail Monday and prosecutors have until Wednesday to formally charge him. It wasn't known whether McDonough has an attorney of record who could comment on his behalf. In a probable cause statement released Monday, McDonough told police he did not know how to operate the vessel or its lights.
Clipper ships make daily runs from Seattle to Victoria, British Columbia. Victoria Clipper is popular with tourists and ferries about 300,000 passengers a year.