Who owns the Timothy J? Sunken Mattituck charter boat leaves town searching for answers

This story has been updated with additional information about the spill response and ongoing cleanup.

Chartering a trip aboard the Timothy J once meant a day hauling fluke, striped bass and other fish from Long Island Sound.

Now the 60-foot boat has become a different kind of fish tale, a mystery over who owns the abandoned vessel as it slowly sinks to the depths of Mattituck Creek.

On Thursday, Southold Town officials remained stumped as they huddled to coordinate the next steps in getting the doomed craft removed — and who should be billed for hauling it out of the water.

“Ultimately, we feel like the boat owner is responsible, because it is in fact their boat,” Supervisor Al Krupski told The Suffolk Times after an early-morning meeting with the town attorney, police department, bay constables and trustees.

The Timothy J is tied up at a private commercial dock at 5505 Mill Road, a short cast from the recently renovated Old Mill Inn. Federal Coast Guard records reviewed by The Suffolk Times show it was an inspected passenger vessel built in 1964. The records list the boat as inactive, with an out-of-service date of Aug. 10, 2024, and show its last drydock inspection was completed June 20, 2023.

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Jeff Strong, president of Strong’s Marine, said he does not know who owns the derelict vessel, which remains partially submerged not far from Strong’s Yacht Center, one of several marinas owned by the Strong family.

“We haven’t had any association with the boat at all,” Mr. Strong said.

He described the Timothy J as “the old wooden boat” that had been tied up at the dock “for quite some period of time.”

The U.S. Coast Guard previously said the owner was unknown and that the cause of the sinking remained under investigation.

A Facebook page for Timothy J Fishing Charter only adds to the mystery.

The “cash-only” business advertised daily fishing trips out of Mattituck aboard a “60 ft fishing vessel” operated by “Capt. Tim and Capt. James.” Customer reviews continued through 2023, and the page listed the same telephone number displayed on a weathered sign still hanging beside the dock. That number has since been disconnected.

The Facebook page shows years of successful trips, with photo after photo of smiling anglers of all ages holding their catch of the day across the deck. Reviews praised the crew into 2023, including one customer who wrote that “Captain James always puts us on the fish.”

The trail turns murkier than the depths of Mattituck Inlet after that.

Southold Town tax records show the property is owned by AWC Dockside LLC, and state records list Daniel Alfred Cooke as the company’s registered agent.

Mr. Strong said he understood Mr. Cooke had been trying to resolve the situation for more than a year after the boat was apparently abandoned at the dock.

Mr. Cooke has not returned multiple messages left by The Suffolk Times.  He lives in Pompano Beach, Fla., according to state records.

Meanwhile, the diesel cleanup appears to have progressed from when the boat began its final voyage to the sea floor over the Fourth of July weekend, as The Suffolk Times exclusively reported. State DEC staff and workers from Miller Environmental were at the dock this week removing fuel from the boat, according to several local residents concerned about damage to the estuary.

When The Suffolk Times returned to the dock Thursday morning, the Timothy J had settled deeper into the creek than on the previous visit Monday, with the lower cabin submerged.

The brackish water appeared noticeably clearer than earlier this week, although a light sheen remained visible around the containment boom surrounding the boat.

Mr. Krupski said the diesel fuel had been removed “as far as I know.”

Cleanup crews recovered approximately 50 gallons of fuel remaining in the vessel’s tanks, hydraulic oil and engine motor oil during the spill response, a source close to the situation told The Suffolk Times on Thursday. Additional work was underway to plug the vessel’s tank vents to reduce the chance of any residual product entering the water, the source added.

The Coast Guard has assumed the lead for the remainder of the cleanup effort, while DEC will continue monitoring the vessel to ensure any remaining fuel leaks are contained and recovered, according to the source.

DEC’s authority does not extend to salvaging or removing sunken vessels.

The Suffolk Times has requested an on-the-record response from the Coast Guard and DEC about the cleanup, vessel removal and remaining costs.

According to information previously provided to The Suffolk Times, the Coast Guard and the New York State Spill Fund are expected to cover the diesel spill response. Southold officials have not yet said who will ultimately bear the cost of raising and disposing of the vessel.

Mr. Strong said his company wants to lend the town a hand in that process.

“We did offer to be able to hold it so that they can get it cut up and taken away,” he said.

Mr. Krupski said abandoned vessels present an ongoing challenge for waterfront communities and stressed that the town does not want the public to bear the burden when private boats are left behind.

“We don’t want it to become widespread,” he said. “It’s just a public liability.”