George Pino, a real estate broker in Florida, was allegedly involved in a deadly Biscayne Bay boat crash in 2022 which took away the life of a teenage girl. On Thursday, Pino appeared in court and surrendered himself to the authorities. He is facing a felony vessel homicide charge for reportedly being involved in the boat crash.
The boat crashed on September 4, 2022, the Labor Day weekend, when George and Cecilia Pino hosted their daughter's birthday party. They took several teen girls on a boat, which included students at Carrolton School of the Sacred Heart and Our Lady of Lourdes Academy.
Upon investigation, it was confirmed that George Pino was the pilot of the vessel when it hit a channel marker near Boca Chita Key. The 52-year-old real estate broker alleged that another boat came by which created a big wake. According to Mimai-Dade Fire Rescue, as he reportedly turned to make sure all the girls were fine, he hit the marker.
The boat crashed and knocked everyone out of it. Out of the 14 passengers, 11 were injured. When six of them were taken to the hospital for medical assistance, Lucy Fernandez, a 17-year-old girl died. Moreover, Katy Puig, another classmate on board, suffered a brain injury.
What are the charges George Pino is facing?
According to CBS, last year, George Pino was facing three misdemeanors, including second-degree careless operation of a vessel and careless operation of a vessel that caused serious bodily injury.
On October 31, all these misdemeanors were dropped in favor of the felony charge.
According to The New York Post, Cops mentioned that George Pino was speeding at about 50 mph and hit the marker. Pino was hit with a felony charge when new witnesses came out.
A newly released bodycam footage showed Pino admitting to having two beers while operating the vessel. Following the fatal crash, authorities did not give the real estate broker a sobriety test.
Per a report by the Miami Herald, a total of 61 empty alcohol bottles were found in the crash.
In a family statement to CBS News Miami, George Pino's niece Sofia Castellanos mentioned that the family is trying to help the affected families financially. The statement read,
"If we could give up our lives to bring Lucy back or change what happened that day, we would do so in an instant. Sadly, we cannot. We pray every day for the Fernandez and Puig families and have committed our life savings and taken on substantial debt to help support them."
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"As my father now confronts the serious criminal charges which have been filed, we can only hope that the State Attorney, and the community we love so much, will seek to understand all the facts surrounding this tragic accident," the statement added.
George Pino might be sentenced to a minimum of 15 years or a maximum of 30 years in prison if convicted. He is set to appear next in court in January.
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