A Florida man was detained after attempting to “run to London” in a handmade, human-powered hamster wheel-type watercraft across the Atlantic Ocean.
On August 26, the US Coast Guard apprehended Reza Baluchi about 70 miles (110 kilometers) off the coast of Tybee Island, Georgia.
According to officials, the 44-year-old marathon runner refused to leave the vessel for days and vowed to commit suicide. Mr. Baluchi has attempted three previous identical expeditions, all of which resulted in Coast Guard action.
The improvised device he was using is shaped like a wheel, with paddles meant to move it ahead as the wheel turns.
“Based on the condition of the vessel, which was afloat as a result of wiring and buoys, [US Coast Guard] officers determined Baluchi was conducting a manifestly unsafe voyage,” according to the criminal complaint.
Mr. Baluchi’s journey began as authorities prepared for the approach of a significant hurricane.
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Three Days of Tension
However, he refused to leave the ship for three days and threatened to commit suicide with a 12-inch knife. According to court documents, he also claimed to have a bomb on board. After being escorted to a Coast Guard facility in Miami, he ultimately surrendered and abandoned his vessel on September 1.
Officials eventually discovered that the “bomb” was a prank. He is currently being prosecuted on federal accusations of obstructing a boarding and violating a Captain of the Port order.
It’s unknown if he’s hired a lawyer to represent him in his criminal case. This was not Mister Baluchi’s first arrest for taking to the sea in his “bubble” sailboat. He was caught in 2021 after being rescued while attempting to ride from Florida to New York and drifting 30 miles south of his starting position.
He had to be rescued from a similar device in St. Augustine in 2014, and then again two years later off the coast of Jupiter, near Palm Beach in Florida. Mr. Baluchi previously stated that he was trying the expeditions to collect funds for a number of organizations, including the homeless and the Coast Guard.
“My goal is not only to raise money for homeless people but also for the Coast Guard, the police department, and the fire department,” he told WOFL-TV in Orlando in 2021. “They are in the public service; they do it for safety, and they help other people.”
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Source: BBC
