Unlicensed captain sent to prison for death of passenger

MIAMI (LOG NEWS SERVICE) — The captain of a Florida charter boat will spend nearly three years in federal prison for the death of a passenger who was struck by a propeller.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Miami says Mauricio Alvarez was recently sentenced to 33 months in prison after pleading guilty to ship officer neglect resulting in death.

The 49-year-old Alvarez was the captain of a 91-foot yacht Miami Vice on April 1 when it stopped in Biscayne Bay and some of the seven passengers went swimming. Alvarez did not check to see if all were back onboard before he engaged the engine, causing one passenger to be killed by the propeller. Alvarez did not have a U.S. captain’s license.

Boat owner Laurent Marc-Antoine Jean Maubert-Cayla has also pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing.

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