Man found adrift in the Atlantic Ocean faces charges after truck, boat stolen

Nova ScotiaA Toronto man is charged with theft and possession of stolen property after being found adrift on a boat in the Atlantic Ocean. RCMP in Nova Scotia say the investigation is ongoing and ranges from one end of the country to the other.Investigation ranges from one end of the country to the other, police sayTom Ayers · CBC News · Posted: Oct 03, 2025 3:49 PM EDT | Last Updated: October 3RCMP say the Canadian Coast Guard ship Sir William Alexander was used in the investigation of a Toronto man who was found adrift in the Atlantic Ocean east of Sable Island. (Glenn Payette/CBC)A Toronto man is charged with theft and possession of stolen property after being found adrift on a boat in the Atlantic Ocean.RCMP say the investigation is ongoing and ranges from one end of the country to the other.Nova Scotia RCMP Cpl. Carlie McCann said a boat described as a cabin cruiser was reported stolen from the marina in the small Cape Breton community of D’Escousse, N.S., on Sept. 23.There, police discovered a truck with Ontario plates that had been reported stolen in Alberta.RCMP say security camera footage connected one man to the truck and the boat.Five days after it was stolen, the vessel was seen off the French islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon, near Newfoundland.Spotted off French islands”When the boat was spotted by DFO fisheries officers who were on an aerial surveillance patrol, it did appear to be adrift and the fisheries officers were unable to make contact with anyone on the boat at that time,” McCann said.Two days later — a week after it was stolen — the boat with a man on board was found drifting in the Atlantic east of Sable Island.RCMP cannot say where the man was headed.”It’s difficult for us to know exactly what happened between the boat being stolen and it being located and then recovered, so I can’t really speculate on what was going on, but we’re glad this ended safely for the person on board,” McCann said.The arrest was made with help from DFO, an RCMP marine unit out of Quebec, the military and the coast guard, McCann said.She said RCMP are now investigating in Nova Scotia, Alberta and British Columbia.ABOUT THE AUTHORTom Ayers has been a reporter and editor for 39 years. He has spent the last 21 covering Cape Breton and Nova Scotia stories. You can reach him at tom.ayers@cbc.ca.