Man charged in fatal Haitian boat accident
MIAMI (AP) – A Haitian man was charged with human smuggling Monday after federal authorities accused him of piloting a boat overloaded with migrants that capsized off Florida’s coast, killing at least nine people, including a pregnant woman.
Jimmy Metellus, 33, is scheduled to appear in federal court Wednesday on charges of smuggling that caused the death of another person. Court records did not list an attorney for him Monday. A conviction could result in the death penalty or a life prison sentence.
Metellus, a Haitian citizen who also has permanent U.S. resident status, was among 16 people rescued when the boat capsized early last Wednesday off Boynton Beach, about 60 miles north of Miami. Most of the survivors – 15 Haitians and one Jamaican – will be deported to their home countries under U.S. policy.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said the dead included two men, six women and an infant. Authorities also issued a separate death certificate for the pregnant woman’s 8-month-old unborn fetus. Two women and a baby remained hospitalized Monday, and the other survivors were in immigration custody. Five people are listed as missing.