MIAMI — Florida boat captain, Dustin Sean McCabe, 49, of Ocala, was found guilty of seaman’s manslaughter, lying to the Coast Guard, and COVID-19 relief fraud following a fatal accident during a scuba trip, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida announced Thursday.
McCabe, the owner of a 48-foot boat named Southern Comfort, initially falsely reported that the vessel was for recreational use when registering with the Coast Guard. However, he modified the boat to operate paid scuba charters, removing important safety equipment and overlooking mechanical issues that would later result in tragedy.
On March 28, 2020, McCabe took paying passengers on a trip despite ongoing mechanical failures. The vessel experienced steering failures, ran aground, and had an incident where the port-side propeller unexpectedly engaged, nearly injuring a diver. Instead of addressing the problems, McCabe continued operating the boat and did not report the issues or warn the passengers.
The following day, while a diver was reboarding, the propeller engaged once again, pulling the victim into the blades, causing severe injuries. Despite the medical examiner testifying that the victim’s wounds were not immediately fatal, they led to drowning due to the trauma.
After the fatal incident, McCabe was prohibited from operating his business but later fraudulently applied for two COVID-19 Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans, misrepresenting his business situation.
McCabe faces sentencing on June 12, with potential prison time of up to 10 years for manslaughter, five years for false statements, and 20 years for wire fraud.
