Shortly after the yacht he was on overturned on Friday, unknowing rescuers pulled a man from choppy waters who was suspected of dumping a dead fish at an Oregon mansion depicted in The Goonies.
The man, later identified as Jericho Labonte was apprehended on Friday after several individuals recognized him, according to a statement from the Astoria, Oregon, police department.
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Who is Jericho Labonte?
Jericho Labonte, born in 1988, is a 35-year-old man in Victoria, British Columbia. Labonte was accused of throwing a dead fish from stormy waves into an Oregon home featured in The Goonies on January 3, 2023, just seconds after the yacht he was on overturned.
After learning that Labonte had uploaded a video on Facebook depicting him laying the dead fish on the porch of the house, police said they began looking for him. The mansion is known by the nickname The Goonies because it features in Steven Spielberg’s 1985 boyhood adventure movie of the same name.
Authorities learned the boat in the video had been stolen and the guy recovered was thought to be Labonte only after the U.S. Coast Guard posted a video of a spectacular rescue on Friday, according to police.
According to the Astoria police, Labonte was sought after on suspicion of theft, endangering another person, using a vehicle without permission, and making criminal mischief. According to the Associated Press, Astoria Police Chief Stacy Kelly claimed that some of the charges stemmed from earlier investigations in British Columbia.
Video of the rescue from a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter showed Labonte alone on a 35-foot boat that had issued a mayday call and was taking on water, according to the Coast Guard. The boat capsized as a result of a rescue swimmer going overboard as he raced toward them through the choppy water.
According to the footage and Coast Guard comments, the rescue swimmer confronted the wave head-on, dove beneath it, and came out to seize the suspect.
The two were raised to safety by a helicopter crew, according to the agency. The Harbor of Astoria security chief later that day alerted police that the rescue vessel had been taken from the port. Numerous locals also contacted to identify the man who had been saved as Labonte, according to the police.
