American Sailing Couple Was Killed After Prison Break in Grenada. The Killers Just Learned Their Fate
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NEED TO KNOW
- Three prisoners escaped from a prison in Grenada in 2024 and hijacked a boat occupied by an American couple, and killed them before throwing the victims overboard
- The ringleader, Ron Mitchell, received two life sentences, and two other men received 50-plus year sentences
- The victims, Ralph Hendry and Kathy Brandel, were described as experienced and beloved sailors, who were spending the winter cruising the Caribbean
Three men who escaped from a prison on the island nation of Grenada and murdered an elderly U.S. couple aboard their boat while they traveled between Grenada and St. Vincent were sentenced to prison last week.
Ron Mitchell, a sailor in his 30s and the ringleader of the attack, received two life sentences for the murders of Ralph Hendry, 66, and Kathy Brandel, 71, according to the AP.
Trevon Robertson, a man in his early 20s, received 56 years for manslaughter and additional sentences for other crimes, the outlet reported.
Atiba Stanislaus, a farmer in his 20s, received 60 years for manslaughter and an additional 18 years for the rape of Brandel, along with other sentences for other crimes including kidnapping.
On Feb. 18, 2024, the three men escaped from prison and hijacked the boat the couple was on and threw them overboard, authorities said, the AP reported. The three men were arrested in St. Vincent.
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The couple, described by fellow sailors as devout Christians and experienced cruisers, were known to be cautious at sea. As longtime members of the tight-knit Salty Dawg Sailing Association, they had joined a rally in the fall of 2023, sailing from Hampton, Va., to Antigua.
“They were always willing to give help to anyone in need, they were very giving people,” family friend Will Knoll, who sailed with them on the rally, recalls in an interview with PEOPLE. “It’s just a tragedy that this would occur to them.”
The bodies of Hendry and Brandel were never found.