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NEW YORK (AP) — The captain of an unauthorized tour boat that
capsized in the Hudson River, killing a woman and a 7-year-old
child, was sentenced Thursday to 18 months in prison,
prosecutors said.
Richard Cruz, 33, pleaded guilty in October to a misconduct and
neglect charge specific to boating. Court papers show he
admitted that he overloaded his boat — called Stimulus Money —
and didn't have the Coast Guard credentials needed to take
paying customers aboard.
The boat flipped over and plunged all 13 people aboard into the
water near Manhattan’s West Side on July 12, 2022, prosecutors
said. The woman, 48, and the boy died after being trapped
underneath the vessel.
Manhattan-based U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon said in a
statement that the case shows commercial boat captains “that
there will be consequences when they fail to follow the federal
regulations and safety protocols that exist to keep passengers
safe.”
Her office said Cruz had the boat going fast, though operators
of small boats had been warned of high winds and heavy seas.
A message seeking comment was sent to Cruz's lawyer.
Cruz, of Elizabeth, New Jersey, also was ordered to pay $50,000
for the victims' funeral expenses, prosecutors said.
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