Police: Florida man steals boat from dentist who killed Cecil the lion

Credit: Collier County Sheriff's Office

Credit: Collier County Sheriff's Office

A neighbor of the infamous Walter Palmer, a man who killed Cecil the lion, was caught stealing his boat Sunday night at his Florida vacation home, according to police.

Andrew Derwin, 26, of Marco Island was arrested on grand theft charges after he crashed Palmer's boat at Caxambas Park Marina. A passenger on the boat with Derwin suffered serious injuries from the crash but his current condition has not been released. 

Palmer, a Minnesota dentist, made headlines in July 2015 when he went on a hunting trip in Zimbabwe and killed Cecil, one of Africa's most famous lions.

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Marco Island police told Naples Daily News that Derwin took the keys to Palmer's boat off the lanai. A woman who was supposedly watching the home said to police that Palmer left the keys there for a maintenance person to service the $61,000 boat. The worker was supposed to tell the woman to put the keys back inside the house, Naples Daily News reports.

Protesters of Palmer's lion-killing vandalized his vacation home in August 2015. The words "Lion Killer" were found spray-painted on the garage door along with pickled pig's feet scattered on the driveway.

According to the Collier County Sheriff's Office, Derwin remains at the county jail on a $10,000 bond. 

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