Couple Caught Driving Stolen Boat on the Hudson River

The City of Poughkeepsie Police Department's Marine Unit intercepts a couple driving a boat stolen from the Poughkeepsie, NY, waterfront.

It's not every day you hear about a Hudson Valley police department deploying its Marine Unit to search and canvass a waterway for a stolen boat, but that's exactly what happened earlier this week on the Hudson River near Poughkeepsie, New York.

Boat Stolen From Waterfront in Poughkeepsie, NY

According to the City of Poughkeepsie Police Department (CPPD), it all started on Wednesday, August 13th, 2025, at approximately 8:07 a.m., when someone called 911 to report that a boat was stolen from the Poughkeepsie waterfront and was apparently traveling on the Hudson River.

The City of Poughkeepsie Police Marine Unit was immediately dispatched to search and canvass the river to try and locate the stolen vessel.

Couple Caught Driving Stolen Boat

Soon after, the Marine Unit located the boat, which was heading south on the river with two people on board, and escorted it to an area marina. Once at the marina, the boat's occupants, identified as 42-year-old David Dacey and 41-year-old Christine Vacarr, were taken into police custody without incident.

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Both suspects were charged with grand larceny, criminal possession of stolen property, and criminal mischief, all felonies. In addition, police discovered that Dacey was allegedly in possession of a quantity of narcotics and was charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, a misdemeanor. Both suspects were taken to the City of Poughkeepsie Police headquarters and were processed pending arraignment.

Police didn't say what type of boat was involved or who reported it stolen, but did say that the suspects started the boat by bypassing the ignition switch. When more information is available, we will update this article.