Monroe County detectives and Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation officers were called to Tavernier’s Old Settlers Park the morning of May 6 after a body was found floating in the water from a suspected boat crash.
Not far from the park, law enforcement discovered a boat lodged in the mangroves near Driftwood Trailer Park in Tavernier. According to FWC, a 23-foot Sea Fox was traveling on the oceanside near MM 92 on May 5 when the boat collided with a dock. The operator of the boat, Paul Anthony Benavides, 28, of Key Largo, was thrown from the vessel.
Benavides’ body was recovered the next day. An investigation continues into the incident
