A Texas pilot has admitted to intentionally ditching his recently purchased Beech Baron in the Gulf of Mexico for the insurance money. Theodore Robert Wright pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit wire fraud and conspiring to commit arson as a result of a federal investigation that looked at a series of expensive insurance claims that included a yacht, a Cessna Citation, a Lamborghini and the Baron. He almost certainly faces time in prison since the maximum sentence is 40 years. Three other accomplices have also pleaded guilty but most of the attention is on Wright because of his brief brush with celebrity after the ditching.
Wright shot cellphone video of himself bobbing around in the Gulf waiting for rescue and the remarkable footage earned him a day or two of news cycle notoriety. It also resulted in a promo video for the company that made the waterproof case protecting his phone. But while Wright was basking in the limelight, investigators found the pattern of claims that culminated with his swim in the Gulf. He bought the Baron for a little more than half the insurance payout of $85,000.
