Former Cargo Ship Captain Pleads Guilty to Sexually Abusing Merchant Marine Cadet

John Merrone, a former cargo ship captain, pleaded guilty on July 15, 2026, in Brooklyn federal court to five charges including aggravated sexual abuse and abusive sexual contact. @NBCNews reported that Merrone admitted to having non-consensual sexual intercourse with a 21-year-old U.S. Merchant Marine Academy cadet on the vessel Liberty Glory after drugging her with an intoxicant in 2019.

The plea occurred just as his trial was about to start, after a jury had been picked and the complainant was present in the courthouse. , by his lawyer Bruce Barket. He faces up to life in prison, with federal sentencing guidelines recommending 15 to 19 years.

Sentencing is scheduled for December 22, 2026, before Judge Ramon E. Reyes Jr. Merrone will remain free on bail until then. Prosecutors said Merrone had sent Facebook messages to the cadet and another student weeks before they boarded the 623-foot Liberty Glory for a voyage from Bahrain to Corpus Christi, Texas.

On September 9, 2019, he invited them to his room for a “soda,” poured drinks from an open bottle for the women, and the cadet awoke the next morning with no memory of the events, feeling nauseous and with vaginal discomfort. Merrone later told the cadet he had “fun last night” and offered her money, which she declined. He sent her a photograph of herself holding money with the message “lol.

” and showed her the underwear she had been wearing. Merrone had a prior conviction for false imprisonment and battery in a Florida Keys case that was overturned on appeal. The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, New York, has about 1,000 students and is the only military service academy under the Department of Transportation.