Man Pleads Guilty To Fishing Boat Murder Off Cape Cod

NANTUCKET, MA — A fisherman pleaded guilty to fatally stabbing another crew member aboard a scalloping boat off the coast of Massachusetts in 2018.

Franklin Freddy Meave Vazquez, 31, pleaded guilty to one count of murder in the second degree, one count of attempted murder and one count of assault with a dangerous weapon.

On Sept. 23, 2018, Vazquez bludgeoned a crew member unconscious with a hammer inside the shucking house of The Captain Billy Haver, then walked out onto the deck and stabbed another with a long fillet knife, the U.S. Attorney's office said.

A third man climbed up from the ice hold to investigate, and Meave Vazquez hit him in the head with the hammer, causing him to fall back down the ladder, federal authorities said. Meave Vazquez then struggled with the boat captain before climbing to the top of the rigging mast, the USAO said.

At the time of the attack, the boat was 55 miles off the coast of Nantucket with seven crew members aboard. The Coast Guard arrested Meave Vazquez, who remained at the top of the mast until he was taken into custody, federal authorities said.

The first crew members attacked were taken by rescue boat to a nearby ship for medical attention, where the stabbing victim was pronounced dead.

Federal authorities said Meave Vazquez is a Mexican national in the country illegally. He is scheduled to be sentenced June 28 and faces up to life in prison.