Federal prosecutors have filed criminal charges against a 46-year-old boat captain following a nighttime vessel capsizing in New York Harbor that resulted in the deaths of a 27-year-old woman and her five-month-old infant daughter, according to court documents filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York and reported by NBC News.
The captain, Manuel Hernandez of Manville, New Jersey, faces two counts of misconduct and neglect of a ship officer resulting in death, as detailed by NBC News. The tragic incident unfolded late Saturday evening near Liberty Island, where investigators say an overloaded recreational watercraft flipped in choppy waters during a commercial tour of New York Harbor.
According to the criminal complaint cited by NBC News, Hernandez was piloting a Yamaha AR210 jet vessel on Saturday night. Investigators allege that the watercraft was neither registered for commercial harbor operations nor certified to carry paying passengers. Furthermore, prosecutors state that the boat lacked infant-sized personal flotation devices and carried a total of 14 people on board—exceeding the manufacturer’s maximum capacity limit of 10 passengers.
The Fatal Harbor Tour and Capsizing Incident
Saturday’s excursion was arranged through a tour operations company that marketed itself as a luxury limousine and rental yacht provider, according to the NBC News report. Passengers paid $1,800 for the evening trip around the harbor near the Statue of Liberty. In a post-arrest interview with law enforcement, Hernandez stated that he had occasionally worked for the tour operator since 2025 and had previously run two similar tours using his own personal boat, a larger Yamaha AR250 model.
Because his personal watercraft required mechanical repairs on the weekend of the incident, Hernandez used a friend’s boat for the Saturday night tour without informing the owner that it would be used for a commercial excursion with paying customers, prosecutors allege. Hernandez told authorities he initially believed the passenger count would be 12 but ultimately agreed to take 13 passengers, in addition to himself.
Among the passengers were Sara Sanchez, a 27-year-old resident of Queens, along with her five-month-old daughter, Antonella Garcia, and the child’s father, Andres Garcia, as reported by NBC News. Before departure, Hernandez reportedly asked the parents if they possessed an infant-sized life jacket. When they confirmed they did not, Hernandez stated the vessel was unequipped with child-sized safety gear and instructed that an adult wear a standard life jacket while holding the infant throughout the trip—a directive Sanchez followed.
At approximately 10:20 p.m., roughly three hours and twenty minutes into the journey, Hernandez executed a U-turn that steered the vessel into a heavy swell. According to the federal complaint, the swell was “possibly caused by the wake of a larger passing vessel.” The wave swamped the bow of the boat, causing it to capsize immediately and throwing all 14 occupants into the water.
Emergency Response and Investigation
Emergency responders from the New York Police Department, the U.S. Coast Guard, and the New York City Fire Department rushed to the scene in the Hudson River near Buoy 32 between the Statue of Liberty and Bay Ridge Anchorage, according to reporting from CNN and the Daily Mail. Rescue crews pulled Hernandez and 11 surviving passengers from the water in varying medical conditions.
Law enforcement and Coast Guard personnel recovered the unresponsive bodies of Sara Sanchez and infant Antonella Garcia from the harbor. Both victims received emergency cardiopulmonary resuscitation at the scene before being transported to a hospital in Brooklyn, where they were pronounced dead upon arrival, as outlined by NBC News. The Daily Mail noted that other surviving passengers were treated for minor injuries at local medical facilities.
Court Appearance and Legal Proceedings
Manuel Hernandez appeared in federal court on Monday, where he was formally arraigned on two counts of misconduct and neglect of a ship officer resulting in death, according to NBC New York. During the court appearance, Hernandez was not required to enter a plea and was subsequently released on a $50,000 bail bond.
Defense counsel Amy Gallicchio, who was appointed to represent Hernandez, accompanied her client from the courthouse. Both Hernandez and Gallicchio declined to comment to reporters regarding the allegations in the federal complaint, as reported by NBC New York. Federal prosecutors and investigative authorities have not yet announced the date for the next scheduled court hearing or conference in the case.
Editor’s note: As this is an ongoing federal criminal case, further details and scheduling updates will be provided as official court filings become available. We welcome reader thoughts and discussion in the comments below, and please share this report to keep local waterways safe.
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