Guilty plea in youth boating accident

A 46-year-old tugboat captain pleaded guilty on June 21 to a federal charge stemming from the Biscayne Bay crash that killed three girls in Miami, FL.

Yusiel Lopez Insua will not be going to trial in the case of the deaths of 7-year-old Mila Yankelevich, 10-year-old Arielle Buchman, and 13-year-old Erin Ko Han.

Lopez Insua had been charged with seaman’s manslaughter after the July 28, 2025, collision off Hibiscus Island, as the girls participated in a Miami Yacht Club youth sailing program.

Court filings reported Lopez Insua had prior “near-misses” in the same area. The crash is also the subject of at least one lawsuit in Miami-Dade County court.

Prosecutors and the defense will seek a sentence of one year and one day, plus six months home confinement, but the judge is not required to follow that recommendation, and could sentence him up to 10 years in jail. The sentencing is scheduled for October 13, 2026.