Boat captain charged after fatal New York Harbor capsizing

A New Jersey boat captain accused of taking 13 paying passengers into New York Harbor on an unregistered and overcrowded vessel has been charged in a weekend capsizing near the Statue of Liberty that killed a Queens woman and her infant daughter.

Manuel Hernandez, 46, of Manville, was charged Monday in Manhattan federal court with two counts of misconduct and neglect of a ship officer resulting in death, according to a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. He was not required to enter a plea at his initial appearance and was released on $50,000 bail, NBC New York reported. His court-appointed attorney, Amy Gallicchio, declined to comment to the station.

Sara Sanchez, 27, and her 5-month-old daughter, Antonella Garcia, died after the 22-foot Yamaha speedboat overturned late Saturday near Liberty Island. Authorities said 12 others were rescued and were in stable condition.

Federal prosecutors said Hernandez was piloting a Yamaha AR210 jet vessel for a tour arranged through a company that branded itself as a luxury limousine and rental yacht provider. The trip, priced at $1,800, was supposed to take passengers around the harbor near the Statue of Liberty.

The complaint alleges the boat was not registered, that Hernandez lacked the required Coast Guard credentials to operate it with paying customers, and that he did not have infant-sized flotation devices aboard. Prosecutors also said 14 people were on the vessel, including Hernandez, even though its maximum capacity was 10.

Hernandez told law enforcement he had periodically worked for the tour operator since 2025 and had previously piloted two similar tours on his own Yamaha AR250, a larger boat, according to the complaint. On Saturday, prosecutors said, he used a friend’s boat because his own needed mechanical repairs and did not tell the owner he was using it for a paid tour.

He told authorities he did not know the maximum capacity of the boat used Saturday but knew his own vessel could carry no more than 12 passengers, the complaint says. Prosecutors said Hernandez initially thought the tour would include 12 passengers but ultimately agreed to take 13.

Before boarding, Hernandez asked Sanchez and the baby’s father, identified by co-workers as Andres Garcia, whether they had an infant-sized personal flotation device, according to the complaint. They said they did not. Hernandez allegedly told them the boat did not have one and said one parent would need to wear a flotation device and hold the baby throughout the tour. Sanchez did so, prosecutors said.

At about 10:20 p.m., more than three hours into the trip, Hernandez made a U-turn that brought the boat into a swell “possibly caused by the wake of a larger passing vessel,” the complaint says. The swell swamped the bow and the vessel capsized immediately, throwing everyone aboard into the water.

Other boats, including commercial vessels, a good Samaritan vessel and crews from the New York Police Department, the Coast Guard and the New York City Fire Department, responded. Capt. Doreen McCarthy, the Coast Guard sector New York commander, credited the survivors’ rescue to “heroic, swift actions” by responders from multiple agencies and the good Samaritan vessel.

Sanchez and her daughter were recovered from the water unresponsive. They received CPR and were taken to a Brooklyn hospital, where they were pronounced dead on arrival. The vessel was later pulled from the water and taken to the NYPD harbor unit facility on Randall’s Island.

The complaint says Hernandez never obtained a merchant mariner credential or a valid Coast Guard certificate of inspection, both required under federal rules for vessels carrying paying customers. Hernandez told authorities he never sought either because he did not know they were required, prosecutors said.

Friends, co-workers and neighbors mourned Sanchez and her daughter as an online fundraiser for Garcia topped $25,000 by Monday afternoon. Antonio Russo, general manager at Il Punto Ristorante, said Garcia worked long hours as a waiter, driver and food-runner to support family in New York and Colombia.

“He said: ‘Antonio, would you please mind? I have something planned,’” Russo recalled, saying he had asked Garcia to work Saturday night. “I was so happy for him, because he never had anything planned.”

Diego Naranjo, a Queens neighbor, told The Guardian that Sanchez and her family were “really nice people.” He added, “You can see when a person is noble.”