Prominent Miami real estate broker charged with felony homicide in 2022 deadly boating crash after witness comes forward

Prosecutors on Thursday charged George Pino, a prominent figure in Miami’s real estate industry, with felony homicide after a witness came forward following the death of a 17-year-old girl during a boating crash on Labor Day in 2022.

Pino was at the helm of his 29-foot Robalo boat when it collided with a channel marker off Boca Chita. The impact threw Pino, his wife, and 12 teenage girls into the water.

He was previously charged with three careless boating charges, which were misdemeanors but they were dropped after prosecutors sought out the new vessel homicide charge.

According to the Miami Herald, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue firefighter Matthew Smiley, who was at the scene, told prosecutors that Pino showed signs of being intoxicated. Smiley said he approached Pino in the bay shortly after the crash.

In a report by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Pino said he smashed into a concrete channel marker that day because the wake from a larger boat caused him to lose control of his boat. The report went on to state that Pino declined a sobriety test because his attorney was not present.

The Miami Herald said that the FWC’s lead investigator did not mention that Pino did acknowledge that he was drinking that day.

According to the State Attorney’s Office, previously, the FWC report hindered them from pursuing more serious charges but with Smiley coming forward, they were able to obtain GPS data from Pino’s boat, which they said contradicted his version of what happened in the channel.

The GPS data showed that his vessel was going straight toward the marker.

As a result of the crash, 17-year-old Lucy Fernandez was killed and 18-year-old Katy Puig was left permanently disabled. Both girls were seniors at Our Lady of Lourdes Academy in Southwest Miami-Dade.

If found guilty on the new felony charge, Pino faces up to 15 years in prison.