Ex-Captain Pleads Guilty to Drugging and Raping a US Merchant Marine Academy Cadet on a Cargo Ship
Prosecutors said John Merrone drugged the cadet before the assault, and federal sentencing guidelines call for about 15 to 19 years in prison.
- On Wednesday, former cargo ship captain John Merrone pleaded guilty in Brooklyn federal court to drugging and raping a 21-year-old U.S. Merchant Marine Academy cadet during a 2019 voyage.
- Aboard the 623-foot Liberty Glory, Merrone admitted he knocked the cadet out with an intoxicant after inviting her to his room for a "soda," then had non-consensual sex with her.
- Federal sentencing guidelines recommend 15 to 19 years in prison, with sentencing scheduled for Dec. 22, while prosecutors plan to call witnesses alleging assaults dating back to 1999.
- The former cadet told her attorney "It's over" after watching from the gallery, while U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. said the plea provides the survivor "some measure of closure."
- Recent reports indicate two dozen incidents of unwanted sexual conduct at the academy last school year, as the institution continues addressing sexual abuse within its Sea Year training program.
51 Articles
51 Articles
Cargo Ship Captain Admits Drugging, Raping Cadet
A former cargo ship captain pleaded guilty on Wednesday to drugging and raping a 21-year-old US Merchant Marine Academy cadet who was working on the vessel as part of the academy's Sea Year training program. John Merrone, 53, pleaded guilty just as his trial was about to start in Brooklyn...
Tennessee ship captain pleads guilty to drugging, sexually assaulting merchant marine cadet
A Tennessee man admitted in federal court Wednesday to drugging and sexually assaulting a U.S. Merchant Marine Academy cadet while serving as captain of a vessel at sea in 2019.John Merrone, 54, of Hohenwald, Tennessee, pleaded guilty Wednesday in Brooklyn federal court to five counts, including aggravated sexual abuse, sexual abuse and abusive sexual contact, according to officials. He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.
Ex-captain pleads guilty to drugging and raping a U.S. Merchant Marine Academy cadet on a cargo ship
A former cargo ship captain pleaded guilty on Wednesday to drugging and raping a 21-year-old U.S. Merchant Marine Academy cadet who was working on the vessel as part of the academy's Sea Year training program.
Associated Press News
Ex-captain pleads guilty to drugging and raping a US Merchant Marine Academy cadet on a cargo ship
A former cargo ship captain has pleaded guilty to drugging and raping a 21-year-old U.S. Merchant Marine Academy cadet who was working on the vessel as part of an academy training program.
Ship captain admits raping Merchant Marine Academy cadet as trial begins
The sexual abuse trial for a sea captain accused of raping a cadet from Long Island’s U.S. Merchant Marine Academy while on the high seas came to an early and unexpected end on Wednesday, July 15, after the defendant pleaded guilty in Brooklyn federal court to charges that carry possible life sentences.
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