What to Know
- A Broward Sheriff's Office report released Friday says a firefighter found 56-year-old Robert Huizenga passed out at the helm of his boat
A son of the late South Florida businessman Wayne Huizenga is facing charges that he drove his power boat drunk.
A Broward Sheriff's Office report released Friday says a firefighter found 56-year-old Robert Huizenga passed out at the helm of his 30-foot boat in the New River Canal near Fort Lauderdale late Wednesday. The report says when a deputy arrived Huizenga was sitting on shore, slurring his words and smelling of alcohol. Deputies say he failed a sobriety test.
A bartender at a nearby restaurant told detectives Huizenga had been drinking for hours. According to an arrest report, the bar's manager tried to stop him from leaving, offering to call him a taxi or let him sober up at the bar.
Huizenga untied the boat and sat in the driver's seat, and the manager watched as the boat floated away without the engines being started, the report said.
A fire rescue captain and a battalion chief spotted the boat floating down the canal with Huizenga passed out at the helm, the report said.
Deputies say Huizenga has numerous previous drunken driving and boating arrests.
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He was charged with boating under the influence for a fourth or more time, a felony. Court records do not indicate if he has an attorney.
Wayne Huizenga, who became a billionaire through Blockbuster Video, AutoNation and Waste Management and once owned the Dolphins, Marlins and Panthers, died in March at the age of 80.
