Mornington Peninsula: Cop strips down to undies for swimming rescue of alleged drunk thief from boat

A strange episode on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula forced a police officer to strip down to his undies to save an alleged thief.

Victoria Police rescued a drunk alleged thief from a boat 200m offshore at Capel Sound. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gaye Gerard

A police officer has had to strip down to his undies and swim out to rescue an alleged thief clinging to the back of a boat after she decided she was too intoxicated to return to shore.

Police were called to Capel Sound on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula at about 7.30pm on Thursday following reports a drunk man and woman had swum 200m out to a boat moored offshore.

Police will allege the pair were looking to steal alcohol from the boat but found none.

The 59-year-old man abandoned the woman and swam back safely to shore, while the 46-year-old woman decided she was too drunk to swim and stayed aboard.

A police officer then took off all his clothes except for his underwear and swam out to rescue the Rosebud woman who was clinging to the back of the vessel.

Police reported the woman did not even realise the man coming to rescue her was an officer until he identified himself, read her rights and helped her back to shore.

Police then searched a handbag the woman had left on the shore and it allegedly contained methamphetamines, cannabis and Valium.

The woman was charged with three counts of possessing a drug of dependence, being drunk and disorderly in a public place, tampering with a vessel, attempting to take charge of a vessel while under the influence of liquor and committing an indictable offence while on bail.

The 59-year-old man is expected to receive a fine for illegal use of a vehicle.

The 46-year-old woman was remanded in custody to appear before Frankston Magistrates Court on Friday morning.