A newly appointed city manager in one of California’s most affluent waterfront communities allegedly broke onto a yacht early Saturday and drank a full bottle of Grey Goose vodka while repeatedly blasting the vessel’s horn.
Elaine Forbes, 53, who was selected just three weeks earlier to lead the upscale city of Sausalito, was later arrested on suspicion of burglary.
Relatives said Forbes was “experiencing a mental health crisis” during the incident and had been missing from the San Francisco home she shares with her wife for more than a day.
She was found only after the yacht’s captain, Bill Aubrey, heard the horn sounding shortly after 5.30am Saturday, around the same time an emergency vehicle with sirens was passing nearby, he told the San Francisco Standard.
Aubrey said he immediately recognized the noise as coming from a particular 75-foot boat docked at the Sausalito Yacht Harbor. He ran from his own nearby vessel and discovered Forbes locked inside the yacht’s wheelhouse, still sounding the horn.
After boarding the yacht and telling Forbes to leave, Aubrey said she simply looked back at him and cheerfully replied, “Good morning!”
Marin County sheriff’s deputies said they were dispatched to the harbor shortly before 7am and found Forbes still aboard. According to authorities, she claimed the boat belonged to her, ordered deputies off “her” yacht and complained that she was having a “bad morning.”
Deputies later contacted the yacht’s owner, who confirmed Forbes had no permission to be on the vessel.
Elaine Forbes, 53, was arrested on suspicion of burglary charges early Saturday morning
Police took her into custody at the Sausalito Yacht Harbor marina after she was found inside a yacht at that did not belong to her
Still, Aubrey said Forbes remained on the yacht’s deck for about 20 minutes before she decided to disembark as deputies handed her a blanket to warm herself up.
‘She didn’t seem disheveled,’ the captain said, adding that Forbes’ demeanor seemed ‘normal, friendly.’
When Aubrey was then able to board the yacht, he said he found that nothing was broken or damaged, and nothing appeared out of place except for a blanket.
But a large bottle of Grey Goose vodka and a bottle of tequila that had been full just the night before were noticeably empty.
‘She wasn’t staggering, but the booze was gone,’ Aubrey said.
It remains unclear how Forbes wound up on the yacht, which Marin County sheriff’s officials said she targeted at random.
But Aubrey said deputies told him they had been out searching for the city manager after she was reported missing.
Forbes, left, was reported missing on Friday morning
The missing persons report was filed at 9.56am on Friday, just one day after the Sausalito City Council met in closed session to approve Forbes’ leave of absence, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
It said she was last seen in San Francisco on Thursday, after she left a house on Pfeiffer Street to meet a friend and former co-worker.
MORE STORY: Kamala Harris Condemns ICE Over Fatal Maine Shooting of Joan Sebastian Guerrero After Alleged Vehicle Attack
Sam Singer, a spokesperson for Forbes’ family, said her wife first became concerned about her that night after Forbes left home in a ‘disoriented state.’
Her ID, wallet and other personal belongings were found later that evening, leading the family to believe she was in immediate danger.
‘They did not know what happened. So the police said, “Look, normally you wait 24 hours, but given that it’s a prominent individual, you probably should file a missing persons report sooner rather than later,”‘ Singer told the Chronicle.
Both the San Francisco and Sausalito police had been asked to try to make contact with Forbes in the aftermath, but were unsuccessful.
Singer also told the Daily Mail Forbes owns a boat on the Sausalito waterfront and ‘likely believed she was in her own boat, when she was, in fact, on someone else’s vessel.’
The spokesperson has previously described how Forbes was suffering from a mental health crisis, and he said she is now ‘speaking with mental health professionals and her attorney to figure out the best next steps to get mentally fit again.’
A spokesperson for Forbes’ family noted the city manager owns a boat on the Sausalito waterfront and ‘likely believed she was in her own boat, when she was, in fact, on someone’s else’s vessel’
‘There is an outpouring of support from former San Francisco mayors, supervisors, elected officials, staff members and friends who know what an incredible public servant she has been. And, will be again in the future when she is capable of doing so,’ Singer said in a statement to the Daily Mail.
‘Her family thanks people for their outpouring of support for her mental condition and wishes for a positive recovery,’ he continued.
‘They also wish to thank the Sausalito police dept. and the Marin Co. Sheriff’s department for their assistance.’
But Forbes’ career in city politics now remains unclear as she remains held on a $50,000 bond.
Sausalito city officials have previously said that Forbes’ arrest has been a ‘difficult development for our City staff and our community.’
‘Because this is now an active and ongoing investigation by the Marin County Sheriff’s Office, the City will not comment on the specific allegations,’ the city said in a statement reviewed by the Daily Mail.
City Council appointed Brandon Phipps to serve as Acting City Manager.
The board is then scheduled to discuss Forbes’ job performance and the ‘public employment’ of the city manager during a closed session on Tuesday afternoon, NBC Bay Area reports.
The session is closed to the public, and it is unclear whether Forbes’ arrest will also be discussed at the public meeting that night.
Forbes, second left, previously served as executive director of the Port of San Francisco
Forbes became Sausalito’s city manager in May, earning an annual salary of $275,000, after announcing last September that she was stepping down as executive director of the Port of San Francisco.
She served in the role for nine years. She oversaw a 270-person staff and managed several major waterfront initiatives, including upgrading the seawall along San Francisco’s Embarcadero.
She was also a key figure in the proposal for redeveloping Fisherman’s Wharf.
In May, after being appointed to the role, Forbes issued a statement saying: ‘I am honored to be coming home to Marin.
‘I am excited to get to work supporting the city’s long-term fiscal sustainability, preparing for sea level rise, and building a strong organization that delivers exceptional service.’
