Grandfather of Toddler Who Died on Cruise Ship Explains Why He's Pleading Guilty
February 26, 2020 | 3 min read
The grandfather of a toddler who died on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship in July 2019 has pleaded guilty to negligent homicide in her death. Salvatore Anello, 51, entered the plea on Monday in federal court in Puerto Rico, where the ship was docked when the incident occurred.
Anello, who was supervising his 18-month-old granddaughter Chloe Wiegand at the time, initially claimed that the girl had slipped from his arms and fallen through an open window on the 11th floor of the Freedom of the Seas, but investigators later determined that he had been holding her out the window when she fell.
In a statement released after the plea hearing, Anello's attorney Michael Winkleman said that his client "is heartbroken over the loss of his precious granddaughter" and that he "takes full responsibility for his actions on that tragic day."
Winkleman also said that Anello "was not under the influence of alcohol or drugs at the time of the incident" and that he "had no intention of harming his granddaughter."
Anello faces up to six months in prison when he is sentenced on May 28.
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