INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — A lifeguard nearly discarded a life jacket that washed onto a county beach — until he discovered a payload of cannabis hidden inside.
When Daniel Otto looked to see why the vest felt “unusually heavy,” he found six packages — 41 pounds — of marijuana inside the vest’s life-saving foam compartments, according to a sheriff’s report.
The Golden Sands Beach Park lifeguard, 26, reported the vest to law enforcement officers after finding it lying on the beach just before noon Oct. 23.
He told officials he almost dropped the vest in the trash but took it back to the guard shack and cut open one side revealing the packaged marijuana.
Otto couldn’t be reached for comment this week.
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A deputy says in the report she took the life jacket to the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office crime scene lab where the other packages were cut out and weighed, totaling 41.24 pounds.
Afterward, the drugs were placed in an evidence room and the case was closed with no further investigation, according to the report.
The week before, a series of packages washed up on at least three Indian River County beaches including Golden Sands Beach Park, 10350 Stte Road A1A, just north of Wabasso.
On Oct. 19, deputies combed beaches between Round Island Oceanside Park, 2201 South State Road A1A, and Golden Sands Park, over 16 miles, after three suspicious packages were reported between roughly 3 p.m. and 4 p.m.
At least two of the objects found were taped packages containing what deputies said appeared by look and smell to be marijuana, according to reports.
A third object found at John’s Island in Indian River Shores was only described as a brick-like package.
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