Florida lobster mini season diver accused of shutting off air supply

A battle over a lobster diving spot off the Florida coast allegedly escalated into an underwater nightmare after a man was accused of shutting off another diver’s air supply — a confrontation that landed him behind bars on an attempted murder charge.

Michael Joseph Simpson, 51, surrendered Tuesday to the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in Miami-Dade County, where he was booked Tuesday evening on an attempted murder charge, according to Miami-Dade jail records. His bond was set at $10,000.

According to Local 10 News, the incident occurred shortly after 7 a.m. on July 29 about a half-mile east of Fisher Island during Florida’s annual lobster mini season.

Citing the arrest affidavit, Law&Crime reported that Simpson allegedly approached another boat at a high rate of speed and circled the vessel several times before anchoring about 10 feet away.

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Investigators say the confrontation began after Simpson claimed the group was diving in “his spot” and warned that a larger boat was on its way before it arrived and anchored nearby.

Authorities allege Simpson then threatened to turn off the surface-supplied air system providing oxygen to an 18-year-old diver searching for lobsters. Investigators say Simpson jumped into the water and intentionally shut off the unit.

As the confrontation unfolded, witnesses yelled, “We have a diver down there you a–hole!” according to the arrest affidavit cited by Law&Crime.

The diver’s boat owner jumped into the water and pulled him to the surface. The diver was gasping for air and appeared disoriented but was not injured, Local 10 reported.

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Rodriguez was awaiting trial on charges including cocaine possession with intent to sell, being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, and trespassing at the Miami-Dade Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in Miami, Fla. (Google Maps)

Investigators allege Simpson left the scene before deputies arrived. After authorities identified him as the suspect, Simpson voluntarily surrendered Tuesday, according to Local 10.

Simpson’s attorney, Howard Srebnick, strongly denied the allegations in a statement to Digital, arguing that investigators ignored evidence and witnesses that he says support his client’s account.

Srebnick said Simpson was diving from his own boat with friends and his two young children and “never disabled anyone’s diving equipment.”

Srebnick said video shows one of the accusers became entangled in the Brownie’s Third Lung air system while Simpson “was nowhere near it.”

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A tourist snorkels near the Christ of the Abyss statue surrounded by dead coral on the ocean bed in the Straits of Florida near Key Largo, Florida, on September 23, 2021. (Photo by Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images)

He also disputed investigators’ allegation that Simpson fled, saying his client instead idled his boat away from the immediate area to avoid escalating the confrontation before cooperating with responding Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers and providing a statement.

Srebnick said numerous eyewitnesses aboard two separate boats corroborate Simpson’s version of events and criticized the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office for arresting his client before interviewing what he described as exculpatory witnesses.

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“We are optimistic that the State Attorney’s Office, after reviewing the video and interviewing all the eyewitnesses, will dismiss the charges, clear his name, and restore the reputation he has spent a lifetime building,” Srebnick said.

Digital has reached out to the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office for additional comment.