Talk about ICE-y reception!
Page Six has learned that while at the helm of a yacht owned by an NBA star, “Below Deck” star Captain Kerry Tithers found himself in a tense encounter with federal agents, including masked ICE officers.
We’re told he captained a nine-day voyage to the Bahamas and was on his way back to Miami when one of the ship’s four engines failed.
According to a saltwater source, about 10 miles off the Florida coast, a second engine failed, leaving Captain Carey struggling to navigate the rapidly moving waters.
He called emergency service Towboat US for assistance. But instead, he found that two federal vessels had approached him, one operated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the other operated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
We’re told one boat had three or four agents in it, while the other had seven or eight masked officers.
Insiders say the agents demanded that they slow down the vehicle and let them board. But Titherage, who has more than 30 years of experience working on boats, refused. They were concerned that reducing speed and difficult conditions would be dangerous.
We are told that federal boats pursued her for about two hours, until Captain Carey was able to slow down to safety and they eventually boarded the boat.
Agents searched the ferry for smuggled goods and checked passengers’ passports, spending about an hour checking the visa of a female foreign national on board before allowing her to disembark.
A representative for Captain Kerry told Page Six, “We are pleased that the situation did not escalate and everyone evacuated safely.”
ICE did not respond to our request for comment.
The Captain made his reality TV debut on “Below Deck Adventure” in 2022 and replaced longtime star Captain Lee Rosbach from “Below Deck” in 2024. Since then he has been rising to prominence.