Law enforcement in South Florida took a man in for questioning in connection to Saturday's hit-and-run on water that killed 15-year-old Ella Adler of Miami Beach.
The teenager was wakeboarding when she fell into the water while being towed by a boat. Another vessel then struck her, and Adler died from her injuries.
FWC officers said the other boat didn't not stop.
"My heart is broken" for the family were the words of Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Chairman Rodney Barreto this week.
Carlos Guillermo Alonso, 78, retained an attorney in the case and owns the Coral Gables home where the 2020 42-foot Boston Whaler boat, believed to be involved in the fatal incident, was docked, the Miami Herald reported.
According to CBS Miami, an attorney for Alonso said he had no idea the accident happened until police showed up at his house asking questions.
"This is the worst possible tragedy that anyone could imagine. We are devastated for the Adlers for their friends for their family, there is no question in our minds, that this is an absolutely horrific thing that happened," said Field Krasnoff, the attorney representing Alonso.
Barreto said, "As a father and grandfather, my heart is broken for the Adler family. Ella’s death is devastating for her family, friends and the community at large."
As theAssociated Press reported, Adler had been wakeboarding with another girl behind another vessel near Key Biscayne, just south of Miami, when she was hit by the other boat. Reports said there were at least a dozen people on the boat that was pulling Adler.
A funeral was held on Monday in Miami Beach for Adler, who was a freshman at a Coconut Grove high school and a Miami City Ballet ballerina.
