Operator arrested after boat capsizes in New York Harbor, killing 2, including a baby, and injuring 12
The boat operator was charged with multiple counts of reckless endangerment.
By Jessica Gorman, Victoria Arancio, and Bill Hutchinson
August 9, 2026, 10:56 AM
The operator of a boat that capsized in New York Harbor, killing a 5-month-old baby and a 27-year-old woman and prompting the rescue of 12 others, has been arrested on multiple charges of reckless endangerment, officials said on Sunday.
The boat operator, identified as 46-year-old Manuel Hernandez of Manhattan, was arrested on 13 counts of reckless endangerment, according to the New York Police Department (NYPD).
Hernandez was arrested around 2:30 a.m. ET on Sunday, about four hours after his boat capsized near the Statue of Liberty, according to the NYPD.
The Coast Guard said in a statement that it is investigating whether the boat was being used at the time of the incident as an "illegal charter operation."
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Following the initial rescue, the operator of the vessel was arrested by the NYPD for reckless endangerment. Coast Guard Investigators are also determining whether the operation constitutes an illegal charter operation and are coordinating efforts in conjunction with NYPD. The Coast Guard, in coordination with the Coast Guard Investigative Service (CGIS) and the NYPD, is conducting an active marine casualty investigation into the circumstances and cause of a fatal vessel capsizing.
The boat, which the Coast Guard said was a 22-foot-long Bayliner, capsized around 10:30 p.m. Saturday near Liberty Island in New York Harbor, prompting a major rescue operation, according to the NYPD.
NYPD divers and first responders with the New York Fire Department, as well as two Coast Guard vessels and an NYPD helicopter, responded to a call of "persons in the water," according to the Coast Guard.
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Two people, an unidentified woman and a 5-month-old girl, were transported to NYU Language Health Brooklyn, where they were later pronounced dead, the NYPD said.
Twelve people were rescued and taken to area hospitals to be treated for minor injuries, the FDNY said.
The NYPD and the Coast Guard Investigative Service are conducting a marine casualty investigation to determine the circumstances and cause of the fatal incident, according to the Coast Guard.
