NEW YORK — A former cargo ship captain admitted his guilt Wednesday in the drugging and rape of a 21-year-old U.S. Merchant Marine Academy cadet who was aboard his vessel as part of the school’s Sea Year training program.
John Merrone, 53, entered his plea in Brooklyn federal court just moments before his trial was set to get underway. He acknowledged that he had sexual intercourse with the cadet without her consent — describing it as happening “on the ship, in the middle of the ocean” — after rendering her unconscious with an intoxicant in 2019.
A jury had already been selected, and the victim — referred to in court only as Jane Doe — was present in the courthouse and prepared to take the stand. Prosecutors had also planned to call several other women who have alleged that Merrone sexually assaulted them over the past three decades.
The Associated Press does not typically identify individuals who report sexual assault unless they choose to be named publicly.
Merrone had previously faced a conviction for false imprisonment and battery after a Florida Keys waitress accused him of non-consensual sex, but an appeals court threw out that verdict and prosecutors chose not to pursue a retrial.
The former cadet, who continues to work in the maritime field, watched from the courtroom gallery with tears in her eyes as Merrone, showing no visible emotion, said “guilty” to each of five charges against him, which included aggravated sexual abuse and abusive sexual contact.
Her attorney, Ryan Melogy, said she turned to him following the plea and told him, “It’s over.”
“Sex crimes are notoriously difficult to prosecute in general,” Melogy said. “When they occur in the middle of the ocean aboard a ship, the level of difficulty involved in prosecuting them probably increases exponentially.”
Merrone could face up to life behind bars. However, Assistant U.S. Attorney Kayla Bensing noted that federal sentencing guidelines suggest a range of approximately 15 to 19 years in prison. Merrone’s defense team contends that estimate is too high. The guidelines are not binding, and Judge Ramon E. Reyes Jr. has discretion to impose a sentence above or below that range.
Merrone will remain out on bail until his sentencing, which is set for December 22. He and his attorneys, Bruce Barket and Nicole Aloise, had no comment as they departed the courthouse.
A request for comment was submitted to the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy.
“It is my hope that today’s guilty plea will give the survivor of this attack some measure of closure knowing that the defendant has been held accountable for his despicable conduct,” U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. said in a written statement.
Prosecutors say Merrone began reaching out to the cadet and another student via Facebook messages several weeks before the two boarded his ship — the 623-foot-long Liberty Glory — for a voyage from Bahrain to Corpus Christi, Texas.
On September 9, 2019, after more than a month into the voyage and with roughly a week remaining, Merrone messaged both women and invited them to his cabin for a “soda,” according to prosecutors.
“Captain you know I stay away from soda!” the cadet replied in the exchange.
“U may like my soda!?!?” Merrone shot back.
The two women agreed to visit, and prosecutors say Merrone poured each of them a drink from an already-opened bottle of alcohol, then opened a fresh bottle and poured one for himself. Shortly after consuming the drinks, both women lost all memory of the rest of that evening, according to prosecutors.
The cadet woke the following morning in her own bed wearing only a shirt and bra, with no pants or underwear, feeling nauseated, with a headache and vaginal discomfort, prosecutors said. Her friend woke up with severe stomach cramping and a debilitating headache but did not accuse Merrone of sexual assault.
Merrone then summoned the cadet to his cabin and told her he had “fun last night,” that “one thing led to another,” and asked if she wanted to repeat the encounter, prosecutors said. When the cadet told him she had no memory of what happened and that it was not consensual, Merrone offered her money, which she turned down.
Merrone later sent the cadet a photo of herself holding cash, which she believed was taken the night of the assault, along with the message: “lol. That how u make a woman happy!!!!” She had no recollection of the photo being taken, prosecutors said. The captain then went to the cadet’s room and pulled from his pocket the underwear she had been wearing the night of the assault.
The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, located in Kings Point, New York, prepares students for careers in the commercial shipping industry and enrolls approximately 1,000 students. It is one of five U.S. military service academies and the only one under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
In 2016, the academy temporarily halted its Sea Year program — which places cadets aboard container ships, oil tankers, passenger liners, and other vessels — due to concerns about sexual abuse and bullying. The program returned in 2017, limited to ships operated by companies the academy said had adopted new protective policies.
The Sea Year program was suspended again in 2021 after another cadet alleged that a cargo ship supervisor got her drunk and raped her. It later resumed following the implementation of additional safety measures.
