Kevin O'Leary Tweets About 'Shark Tank' Spinoff Following Fatal Boat Crash

Kevin O’Leary may have just returned to the United States following his involvement in a fatal [...]

By Allison Schonter

Kevin O'Leary may have just returned to the United States following his involvement in a fatal boat crash in Ontario, Canada less than two weeks ago, but his mind is on the upcoming premiere of Colombia's adaptation of Shark Tank. On Thursday, Sept. 5, the entrepreneur dubbed "Mr. Wonderful" seemed to put his troubles behind him as he sent out his first tweet since the deadly Aug. 24 boat collision, which left two people dead.

O'Leary shared the same image and a similar message on Instagram, adding, "You'll definitely want to see this."

The tweet and Instagram post came less than two weeks after he and his wife Linda O'Leary's trip to their lakehouse on Lake Joseph turned tragic when, at around 11:30 p.m. on the night of Saturday, Aug. 24, their boat, steered by Linda, collided with a 13-person vessel. The accident left 64-year-old Gary Poltash and 48-year-old Suzana Brito dead and three others injured.

Days after the accident, the Shark Tank star confirmed his involvement in the collision.

"Late Saturday night I was a passenger in a boat that had a tragic collision with another craft that had no navigation lights on and then fled the scene of the accident," he said in a statement to various outlets.

"Out of respect for the families who have lost loved ones and to fully support the ongoing investigation, I feel it is inappropriate to make further comments at this time. My thoughts are with all the families affected," he concluded.

While O'Leary claims that the other boat lacked "navigational lights" and "fled the scene," his allegations have been contradicted by passengers aboard the larger vessel as well as police. Although authorities investigating the incident have not addressed whether or not either of the boats had functioning navigations lights, West Parry Sound OPP Constable Joe Scali confirmed that both vessels left the scene following the collision to contact "emergency services" and were later transported to the West Parry Sound OPP detachment for inspection.

Canadian authorities are keeping details of the ongoing investigation rather tight-lipped, with Scali adding that "they're not releasing anything until the end of the investigation. This is a regular, normal investigation, looking at all the aspects — we have marine technical experts."

Although charges have not been filed, Scali stated that they will be "if warranted."

O'Leary, who boarded a flight from Toronto to Houston, Texas on Labor Day, has since hired Canadian defense attorney Brian Greenspan, who has represented the likes of Justin Bieber, Naomi Campbell, and Catherine Smith in the past.

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