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FORT MYERS BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Three suspects who led local and federal authorities on a 20-hour chase across the Gulf of Mexico have been returned to southwest Florida.
The Coast Guard returned the stolen vessel and three suspects in handcuffs to shore Sunday. Coast Guard officials told the News-Press (http://newspr.es/1QUuzn2) that the suspects include a Mexican national and two permanent, legal U.S. residents.
The Lee County Sheriff's Office was conducting overnight patrols targeting boat thefts when they were alerted to a theft in progress early Thursday in Fort Myers Beach.
When officers arrived, the suspects allegedly attempted to ram their vessel with the stolen boat. The ensuing open-water chase covered over 345 miles before it ended about 125 miles east of Cancun, Mexico, and about 65 miles west of Cuba.
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Information from: The (Fort Myers, Fla.) News-Press, http://www.news-press.com
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