A model sailboat stolen from a popular waterfront restaurant in Lantana has been returned to the owner.
The decorative display with sentimental value was stolen from the Old Key Lime House on April 11.
Old Key Lime House owner Ryan Cordero told WPTV that the boat was a childhood gift from his father, who died in 2020.
Surveillance video provided to WPTV showed an elderly man removing the antique sailboat and walking out of the restaurant with it.
According to a Lantana police report, a detective was able to track down one of the patrons who had been sitting with the 66-year-old Port St. Lucie man.
When confronted by police, the man said he “did not know why he took it because he was really wasted.”
The man gave the boat to police, who returned it to Cordero on Tuesday. Cordero told police he wished to press charges.
Police said there was probable cause to charge the man with theft. It will be up to the state attorney’s office to determine if he’ll be charged.