Feds charge speedboat operator after mother and infant are killed in New York Harbor capsizing

NEW YORK (AP) — The operator of a speedboat that capsized in New York Harbor over the weekend, killing a 27-year-old woman and her infant daughter, is due to appear in federal court in Manhattan on Monday.

Authorities did not immediately reveal the federal charge or charges brought against Manuel Hernandez, a 46-year-old New York man already facing state charges of reckless endangerment in the deaths of Sara Sanchez and her 5-month-old daughter, Antonella Garcia.

It was also unclear who will represent Hernandez in federal court.

Nicholas Biase, a spokesperson for Manhattan federal prosecutors, said Hernandez was in federal custody and that further information would be provided.

The mother and daughter died after a 22-foot Bayliner speedboat overturned late Saturday near the Statue of Liberty.

Police divers found them and they were pronounced dead at a hospital. Twelve other people were rescued before police arrived. The U.S. Coast Guard said they were in stable condition.

Capt. Doreen McCarthy, the Coast Guard Sector New York commander, credited the rescue of survivors to “heroic, swift actions” by those who responded from various agencies, along with a good Samaritan vessel.