Captain in young woman's death at Bahía de las Águilas released from prison

A judge in Pedernales has replaced pre-trial detention with a financial bond and periodic reporting for a boat captain accused of causing the death of a young American woman. Robinson Radhamés Hernández, known as Piter, will pay a 20,000 peso guarantee and must present himself to authorities regularly, while also being prohibited from leaving the country.

Hernández had been detained for approximately two months following the June 22 incident in which Gabriela Cartagena, 20, died after her boat was struck near Bahía de las Águilas. His defense argued that he poses no flight risk and has sufficient ties to remain in the judicial process. They also contended that pre-trial detention should not serve as an anticipated punishment, and that guilt must be determined during the full trial.

The defense characterized the incident as involuntary manslaughter and emphasized that culpability needs to be established by the courts. Hernández's lawyer described him as a hardworking young man with no prior legal issues and expressed sorrow for Cartagena's death, noting that no one intends to cause such accidents. The family's legal representative declined to comment after the hearing, and the victim's relatives were not present.