Questions Remain After July Bimini Crash That Left One Dead and One Missing

A serious boat crash off the waters of Bimini last month left one man dead, his girlfriend missing, and their families demaning justice.

Bimini Boat Crash

The Miami Herald reports that 29-year-old Javier Perez and his girlfriend, 26-year-old Carolyn Alvarez, arrived at Bimini in early July and soon thereafter met another pair, Josbel Fernandez and Violeta Khouri. Fernandez and Khouri invited the couple out for an eveing on a boat. 

Authorities are unsure what happened on the boat that night, but at some point during the night or early morning hours the 32-foot vessel crashed into rocks off the Bimini coast. The crash was so powerful that it ejected at least some of the boat’s passengers, killing Perez and leaving Alvarez missing. 

The Herald reports that the suspicion is that Fernandez was driving the boat while drunk, crashed into the rocks, and then initially attempted to cover up the crash instead of calling the authorities. The article quotes Stanley Stuart, an acquaintance of Fernandez, who said that Fernandez called on him for help after crashing the boat. He reports that Fernandez was drunk and slurring his words at the time. But despite the evidence, including the fact that authorities“collected an assortment of alcoholic beverages for evidential purposes,” authorities have yet to arrest anyone for Perez’s death.

Carolyn Alvarez remains missing. Her mother, Liz, believes that Fernandez is culpable, telling the Herald “Obviously, he was drinking and he didn’t want to get into trouble,” reasoning “If you don’t have anything to hide, you call authorities for help, not your friends.”

The Royal Bahamas Police refused to discuss the investigation.