Florida prosecutors say the diving boat captain is guilty of Seaman’s manslaughter after one of the passengers died of entanglement with a propeller.
Dustin Sean McCabe, 49, of Ocala, said in a news release on March 6 that the U.S. Lawyer’s office for the Southern District of Florida is facing a possible 20-year prison life for allegations related to the operation.
McClatchy News reached out to McCabe’s attorneys for comment on March 7th, but did not receive an immediate response.
The victim was identified as 37-year-old Mollie Ghiz-Flynn and died on March 29, 2020 at a breaker’sleaf diving site, 1.5 miles from Palm Beach Inlet. She was accompanied by her husband, Sean Flynn, he said.
“Molly and Sean had finished their first dive when they were swung around by the boat by Dustin McCabe. McCabe reversed the boat, both divers were sucked in and Molly’s feet were intertwined with the propeller,” Winkleman said in the release.
“With the help of several other individuals, Sean was able to free Molly from the propeller, but it was too late.”
The investigation revealed that the propeller “twisted her foot into the shaft and hugged her underwater.”
“The medical inspector testified that while many of the victims’ deep chop wounds and broken legs were not fatal in themselves, drowsing caused serious pain that contributed to the victim’s death,” a federal official said.
McCabe’s trial was held at Fort Pierce, and the ju judges “convicted of Seaman’s manslaughter (his ability as a vessel owner and a vessel captain) and lay in the Coast Guard and committed a Covid-19 pandemic relief scam,” officials said.
In a revelation made during the trial, McCabe illegally ran a “paid scuba charter” on a boat, so the same propeller almost injured someone before Gizflynn’s death, officials said.
“On March 28, 2020, Southern Comfort experienced a significant mechanical malfunction, including one of the vessel’s port-side propellers, when the vessel went neutral during diver pickup.
“Despite the close call, McCabe took more payment divers the following day, on March 29, 2020, without reporting the incident to the Coast Guard.
Diver’s death banned McCabe from operating the boat and “we were never seen working at the marina again,” federal officials said.
Want to break news in your inbox?
Subscribe to our free newsletter
You will receive real-time updates on major issues and events from Tampa Bay and beyond.
You’re all signed up!
Want more free weekly newsletters in your inbox? Let’s get started.
Check out all options
After McCabe mistakenly cited his business as an operation, an additional charge was added after applying for two loans from the Covid-19 federal relief program created to support small businesses during the pandemic, and then incorrectly listing the business. His application contained “fake tax documents to support the lie,” officials said.
McCabe’s sentence is scheduled for June 12, and he “is facing up to five years in prison for Seaman’s manslaughter charges, up to 20 years in wire fraud, and up to 20 years in wire fraud,” officials said.
