2021-04-22

Hello Key Biscayne!

This week some videos appeared of the people who wrecked those golf carts two weeks ago. In it you see a large group of teens rocking a golf cart back and forth until it tips over. This video has reignited Key Biscayne’s puritan clan of bored keyboard warriors, and they spent all week complaining in chats and various forums about how teens need to be reading books on a Friday night.

[Imagine a photo here of teenagers drinking and flipping a golf cart]

This is a bit dismissive. No doubt the crimes are real. The videos would be posted for you here but they contain too many names and faces and the Rag didn’t have time to blur them, but if you look around the hokey local internet you’re sure to find something.

Anywho, the Rag is being written from a remote location this week and that’s why it’s how it is.

Busted The police arrested three teens in connection with the stolen golf carts this week. One was charged with grand theft, and the other two with trespassing charges as the golf cart owners did not want to press charges.

The best part of this story: somehow none of the arrested kids are from the Key; the key rats got away. 🐀

(Islander News)

New boss The Village has a new manager. After months of whittling down the field, there could only be one, and his name is Steve Williamson.

Who is he? He’s got a good resume, and he passed all the probing background checks, and that’s about as much as one can say. He’s set to start after his contract negotiations are complete. ✍️

(KB Independent)

Jumped the gun Last week the Rag mentioned that curfew was over, with a link to Dade County’s curfew being over. The Key hadn’t quite lifted its curfew yet when that was published, but now it has. Nothing on the Key is open after the curfew time anyway, but at least that annoying checkpoint is gone. ✔️

(KB Independent)

Lots of people wanted to chime in on the Stefano’s story:

Nice throwback story on Linda B’s and Stefano’s. Fun story: my cousins were next door neighbors to Stefano and Linda (they were the nicest!) and we were all there when DEA and FBI came to swarm the house. We saw the choppers and guns-drawn guys going through our yard to get to their backyard. Was a highlight! Except we were (as always) rooting for the bad guys.

-TG

I don’t think you make enough of what the passing of “Stefano’s” from Key Biscayne means. Good luck to Vinya, but now it’s just another upscale wine store. B.P.–before pandemic–I remember talking to an employee who had been around since the heyday. Those were the days, my friends…with or without cocaine.

-NJ

Sad about Stefano’s. It was, at one point, a great liquor store. I remember, before moving here, calling at 11p to see if I could buy a bottle of rum, and even this the store was closed, the manager would say, “come to the restaurant, I’ll get you what you need.”

When they went to the Galleria, it still had great service and selection, and great delivery. But their last swap of hands was bad, it took a dive. Shame.

Now I’ll have to settle for Annie’s Mac & Cheese…never heard of it, but everyone is raving so much about it, must now try.

Cheers!

-RL

I heard that the reason Stefano’s the club finally shut down was because during a birthday celebration there a guy showed up in a brand new Ferrari , got wasted, invited his friend for a ride while the friend’s wife followed behind in their regular car and then they took off speeding and wrapped the car around a tree (is this a run on sentence? I couldn’t figure out where to end it). I don’t remember if both of them died or the friend died. The wife drove up only to find the wreckage. I believe I had an early morning flight that day and saw the car all smashed up near Mast. Somebody told me the story years later and I sort of pieced it together with my memory of the wreck.

Well apparently because the guy was clearly drunk and they kept on serving him Stefano’s was somehow responsible. I don’t know if this story is true.

Anyway what the fuck is Annie’s Mac and Cheese?

-AS

Like the your piece on Stefano and Linda Brandino. To be fair, he refused the entrapment offer at least six times. They kept raising the offer. Finally he said, “OK, let’s talk.” They raided his house and both business one afternoon, all at the same time. Probably 30 vehicles with flashing lights and 50 agents. 😊

During the negations with the “buyer” Stef mentioned he was not reporting all income and had two sets of books. That was the problem.

Linda B’s was not included in the “sale” and she continued to run it for several years . Not an easy task in a small community when your home has just been raided. She showed amazing strength, in my opinion.

Stef plead guilty so she would not be charged or go to jail. Not sure of their current status or whereabouts. I doubt they are still together. Stef may still be inside. That’s all I know, but in that sad story was an amazingly strong woman.

-BBD

Ed note: I couldn’t totally verify these last two stories so don’t go repeating them as absolute fact. They sound right in a coconut telegraph sort of way.

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Next week a breakdown of why the kids are alright. See you then.

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