Summary
Florida man Joe Malinowski, widely known asLieutenant Dan, has been arrested in Tampa. The internet celebrity confirmed his incarceration onTwitter.
Lieutenant Dan, 54, rose to prominence on TikTok for riding out dangerous hurricanes in his small Tampa sailboat. Most recently, he rode outCategory 4 Hurricane Heleneand Category 5 Hurricane Milton in September and October 2024, respectively.
TheTikTok starwas arrested on October 18, USA Todayreports, citing a statement from the local police department. Tampa PD Public Information Officer Verliz Williams said Lieutenant Dan was taken to jail on the charges of failing to appear in court for some of his pending cases and trespassing in a city park after being warned to leave. He was previously charged with creating a public health hazard for not having a marine sanitation device (MSD) on board.
MSDs are used on watercraft to treat and otherwise manage any sewage generated on board. Their primary purpose is to prevent the discharge of untreated waste into the water, which can pollutemarine environments. They are required to have on any vessel with installed toilets under the Clean Water Act, a piece of federal legislation that’s been in effect since the early ’70s.
Lieutenant Dan Sarcastically Thanks Tampa PD for His Arrest
In an October 18 tweet, Lieutenant Dan suggested that he wasn’t discharging any waste but instead stored his urine and feces in “container boxes” near the fridge on his 22-foot boat. He characterized this practice as the reason for getting “locked up,” in addition to sarcastically thanking Tampa PD for this turn of events. Local police said Lieutenant Dan was still in Hillsborough County jail as of Saturday, October 19. It is currently unclear whether he has been released as of the following day. He hasn’t posted any social media updates over the weekend.
Lieutenant Dan’s refusal to leave his boat at the Bayshore Linear Park and Dock aligns with his track record of staying on board no matter what. Most recently, he rode out thedevastating Hurricane Milton, whose wind speeds reached up to 180mph and which is estimated to have caused up to $34 billion in damages, making it one of the costliest storms in U.S. history. Despite its destructive nature, Lieutenant Dan insisted that riding out the Category 5 major hurricane was not a big challenge. In a statement to CBS News, he described the storm as “pretty mellow.” Still, the TikTok star admitted that the strong winds had his sailboat bashing against the harbor wall during part of the storm, prompting him to cut a $250 anchor to prevent further damage.
