Home / Crime and Justice / Boat Captain Gets 4+ Years for Fatal Crash
Boat Captain Gets 4+ Years for Fatal Crash
21 Nov
Summary
- Captain Elio Persico sentenced to nearly five years for manslaughter.
- Adrienne Vaughan, Bloomsbury CEO, died at 45 in August 2023.
- Persico tested positive for drugs and alcohol at time of incident.

A boat captain has received a prison sentence of four years and nine months following a fatal collision that claimed the life of Adrienne Vaughan, CEO of Bloomsbury's U.S. division. The incident occurred in August 2023 off the Amalfi Coast, where Vaughan, 45, was ejected from her speedboat after it crashed with a larger vessel.
Elio Persico, the 32-year-old captain of the speedboat, entered a plea bargain for the charges of manslaughter. Investigations revealed that Persico had tested positive for both alcohol and cocaine at the time of the crash. Vaughan was tragically struck by the boat's propeller after falling into the water, while her husband sustained injuries in the collision.
The captain of the other vessel, the Tortuga, tested negative for substances and was not implicated in the incident. Vaughan was remembered by her company as a "leader of dazzling talent and infectious passion" whose commitment to authors and readers left a lasting impact.




