A man on a personal watercraft made a U-turn that led to his friend’s death. Arrest made.
A New Jersey man turned himself in to face a charge in the Florida Keys in the Christmas Day fatal personal watercraft crash that killed his friend.
Rohit Raj, 25, faces a misdemeanor count of violating navigational rules that resulted in a fatal boating accident.
Raj, from Jersey City, surrendered to Monroe County sheriff’s deputies Tuesday morning and was released later in the day on a $15,000 bond.
He could not be immediately reached for comment.
According to a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission report, Raj and his friend Prapanna Prayank, 26, were driving rented personal watercraft on the ocean side of the Seven Mile Bridge around 4:45 p.m. on Dec. 25, 2019.
Raj made a U-turn to the left and his water bike hit Prayank’s vessel, ejecting both men into the water, according to the report. Prayank was found floating face-up and unconscious, FWC Investigator Justin Powell wrote in his report.
They were on a personal watercraft tour at the time, and their guide and two other boaters rushed Prayank to the Sunset Grille Raw Bar in Marathon, where they were met by medics.
He was pronounced dead on site, according to Powell’s report.
Personal watercraft, or PWCs, are often incorrectly referred to as jet skis. However, Jet Ski is a brand of personal watercraft made by Kawasaki. Other popular brands are WaverRunner and Sea-Doo.
During the initial interview, Raj told FWC officers that Prayank’s vessel struck his PWC. However, investigators determined that Prayank wasn’t traveling more than 5 mph at the time, and was almost stationary, according to Powell.
Damage patterns on both vessels also pointed to Raj’s PWC being the one that struck Prayank’s, Powell said.
Raj did tell investigators that he did not look before making his U-turn, Powell said.
This story was originally published June 9, 2020 at 6:09 PM.
