‘Lieutenant Dan”s dark past has emerged as thousands of people donate to the Hurricane Milton GoFundMe page created for him by a kind-hearted University of Tampa student.
The one-legged sailor who refused to abandon his ship won hearts after 23-year-old student Terrence Concannon shared videos on TikTok of his survival of Hurricane Helene.
Thousands of people have donated to the online fundraiser organized by Concannon, which now totals more than $40,000. Streamer Adin Ross agreed to buy ‘Dan’, whose real name is Joseph Malinowski, a new boat and offered him a potentially lucrative opportunity to livestream his daily life on a platform called Live Kick.
As his Internet fame skyrocketed, Malinowski’s convictions for assault and misdemeanors emerged, along with his multiple mugshots over the years.
Concannon tells DailyMail.com that he was unaware of Malinowski’s past when he offered to help. He has no regrets either, despite what the internet says.
‘Lieutenant Dan’ has had more than 70 contacts with police in Florida and North Carolina since 2012, according to public records seen by DailyMail.com
“He never mentioned anything about it. I had no idea about (the past) and I’m not one to judge. All I saw was a guy who needed help and was willing to give it to him.
Concannon met Malowski for the first time four weeks ago while walking home from campus.
“I passed by him often and one day, his boat’s engine died and he was being sucked under a bridge, so he screamed.”
“He threw the rope at me and I pulled him in.”
Concannon worried about him as Hurricane Helene bore down on the Gulf Coast in September.
“He said, ‘No, I’m going to put up with this.’
It felt natural to check back on him afterwards.
As Milton was gaining strength, he became even more concerned about Malowski’s well-being.
Thousands of people have donated to the online fundraiser organized by student Terrence Concannon, which now stands at $40,000.
The sailor appears on Thursday after surviving the storm on his boat
“That’s when I started filming more and then it blew up.”
As Malowski’s story went viral as the storm approached, social media users began pointing out that the sailor has a criminal record spanning a decade.
Malowski has had more than 70 contacts with police in Florida and North Carolina since 2012, according to public records viewed by DailyMail.com.
He has also been involved in several lawsuits in New Jersey.
As Malowski’s story went viral as the storm approached, social media users began pointing out that the sailor has a criminal record spanning a decade.
Malowski is due to appear in criminal court later this year over a dispute over the ownership of his boat.
Malowski’s criminal record includes accusations of drug possession, assault, resisting police, robbery, assault, among others.
Adin Ross apparently decided to rescind his offer of a new boat for Malowski after discovering his story.
“He came to me, I never asked him,” Malowski said Thursday in an interview. tiktok after the offer is rescinded.
Then he starts singing about my story. You should have done your due diligence.
‘I didn’t ask you, you offered it, I accepted. He asked me to be on Kick 100 hours a month, I told him no problem, I’m willing to do it.
Now he is discussing my story and the deal is done.
Most recently, the sailor served six months in prison for punching a police officer in the nose. He was released in 2022.
Less than a year after his release, Malowski was accused of setting fire to a park bench and pouring gasoline on a woman who he claimed feared for her life.
Malinowski lost his leg in a car accident when he was 16 years old.
However, the case was dropped for unknown reasons.
Last year Malowski also had a run-in with police for sinking another sailboat off the east coast of Florida, according to the orlando sentinel.
Malowski is due to appear in criminal court later this year over a dispute over the ownership of his boat.
“I went to prison, I spent time in jail, but I can tell you: I am innocent of all charges!” Said the sailor about his criminal past.
“They accused me of assault and I didn’t even see the police officer. I was in prison for a year. But karma and god are real.
