The boater who was allegedly responsible for hitting and killing a Florida teen last week reveals he had “no knowledge” of the collision occurred.
As previously reported, the teen was identified as Ella Adler. She was waterskiing near a beach in Key Biscayne, Florida last weekend when she was hit by a boater, who had reportedly fled the scene.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) confirmed the incident occurred. “Witnesses or anyone with information on a boating accident that occurred at approximately 4:30 p.m. on May 11 in Miami are asked to come forward,” the organization’s Instagram post read.
“A juvenile was waterskiing near Nixon Beach in Key Biscayne when she was hit by a vessel. The juvenile died from her injuries.”
Authorities were searching for the boater who had hit the teen. “[The boat] was last seen heading westbound from Nixon Beach. It is described as a center console boat with a light blue hull. The boat has multiple white outboard motors and may have blue or dark blue bottom paint.”
CBS Miami released a video showing the boater arriving home the same day that Adler was killed.
According to the FWC incident report obtained by USA Today, the boater was identified as 78-year-old, Carlos Guillermo Alonso, who goes by Bill.
Boater’s Attorney Releases Statement About Accident that Led to Teen’s Death
Lauren Krasnoff, the attorney representing Alonso, released a statement about the incident. She claimed her client had no knowledge of hitting and killing Ella.
“I will tell you that Bill, who has been boating for 50 years and is a very experienced boater who knows these waters, was out boating by himself on Saturday,” Krasnoff said. “He has no knowledge whatsoever of having been involved in this accident.”
“If he hit Ella that day, he certainly did not know it. Had Bill thought he hit anything, he absolutely would have stopped. But he did not at any point think that he had hit anything, let alone a person.”
Krasnoff then shared that her client had docked his boat in plain sight right behind his house. “And [he] did not even know there was an accident on the water that day until officers showed up at his door.”
Krasnoff added that her client is devastated by the loss of “this intelligent, accomplished, and beautiful young woman.”
He will continue to cooperate with law enforcement in the ongoing investigation. No charges have been announced in the case.