Key West police name two suspects in Southernmost Point buoy-burning vandalism
Key West police on Thursday identified two men they said vandalized the island’s famous Southernmost Point buoy by setting a fire next to it on New Year’s Day.
Police obtained arrest warrants for David B. Perkins Jr., 21, of Leesburg, Florida, and Skylar Rae Jacobson, 21, of Henrietta, Texas.
Both face charges of felony criminal mischief with damages over $1,000.
Perkins was booked into the Monroe County detention center in Plantation on Thursday and released after about two hours without having to post a bond, according to the sheriff’s website.
Jacobson also had plans to turn himself in, said police spokeswoman Alyson Crean.
“He’s got to arrange a flight back here, so it’s probably going to take a few days,” she said Friday.
The incident took place at about 3:20 a.m. — and it was captured on video by a webcam pointed at the site 24/7.
The flames charred the front of the giant concrete buoy, one of the most recognized and photographed places in the Keys, ruining the painted design that’s done by hand.
It will cost at least $5,000 to restore, according to City Manager Patti McLauchlin.
“It’s frustrating,” McLauchlin said of the vandalism. “I don’t even understand the reasoning. There is no reasoning.“
City workers on Sunday started fixing the exterior of the colorful buoy, which was planted at the seaside spot in 1983 to mark the spot as “90 miles to Cuba, Southernmost Point, Continental U.S.A.”
The repainted buoy was finished Thursday night.
The vandalism didn’t stop tourists from posing in front of the landmark for photographs. The buoy, even while sporting the damage, was crowded on New Year’s Day
Police said Sunday that they knew who the suspects were but wouldn’t give their names or say where they live.
This story was originally published January 6, 2022 at 9:49 AM.
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