Below Deck Mediterranean boss Captain Sandy Yawn has learned her lesson on the heels of Ruan Irving’s forged document drama on the hit Bravo show.
During a recent episode of Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, the captain was asked whether she would work with Ruan again, to which she categorically said no.
“I haven’t spoken to him,” she told a fan, adding, “No, I wouldn’t work with him. Not in a million years. No, sorry.”
Forged papers
Sandy revealed in the show that she felt Ruan knew his paperwork wasn’t authentic when he got on the yacht.
It made for a rocky start to Season 8 when she was told that the bosun’s documents may be forged. At the time, Ruan admitted to bringing copies of his medical license and was told to get the original shipped.
Later in the premiere, the captain received a message from the Port Authority because Ruan’s Yachtmasters paperwork revealed someone else’s photo attached when scanned online.
“This is major,” Sandy said. “This is, like, a whole different level. It’s not okay. The entire vessel could be arrested because of one crew member.”
For his part, Ruan denied having any knowledge of a forgery and appeared shocked, saying that he had “been on boats for three years, and I swear to God the last thing on my mind is that the ticket was false.”
He initially said he would fix the paperwork and be back, but eventually called Sandy to say he wouldn’t be returning.
Captain’s culpability?
While Ruan should have been responsible for his papers, Below Deck star Captain Lee Rosbach questioned why Sandy didn’t do her own due diligence.
On his podcast, Salty with Captain Lee, he said that the captain is the only person responsible for what happens on a vessel. “Port State Authority doesn’t give a sh*t if you are putting on a show,” he added. “They don’t care.”
He said that while he didn’t believe the mistake was intentional, he didn’t know why Sandy didn’t catch the mistake when looking at Ruan’s credentials, explaining that when anyone gets on one of his boats, he’s careful about scrutinizing every detail.
“To me, it would be so embarrassing to hand over documents I hadn’t examined first,” he shared. “Do I think she was trying to pull a slick one? No. But it doesn’t make a difference because she’s still responsible. Lesson well learned. Trust, but verify.”
Indeed, that’s a lesson that Captain Sandy won’t soon forget.
Below Deck Mediterranean continues Mondays at 9/8c on Bravo.
TELL US – DO YOU BELIEVE RUAN DIDN’T KNOW HIS PAPERS WERE FORGED? WAS CAPTAIN SANDY ALSO RESPONSIBLE, LIKE CAPTAIN LEE SAID?
