Deckhand admits to having drunken sex with captain when yacht crashed

By: Tamar L.

A deckhand on a luxury yacht in Australia pleaded guilty to negligence for having drunken sex with the captain when the unmanned charter boat crashed, causing $140,000 worth of damage.

Cheya Handley, 26, admitted in court Monday to guzzling booze and hooking up on the bow of the 80-foot Crystal Blue with the skipper, as the pair returned the vessel from Brisbane to the Gold Coast on March 3, 2018, ABC reported.

“Yeah, I did the wrong thing, drinking on the job. I should have known better, I screwed up big-time,” Handley said in a recorded interview with a maritime safety inspector played in court.

“We were chatting, laying down, looking at the stars and then got it on,” she said.

With no one at the helm or serving as lookout, the boat hit a navigation beacon and then crashed into a moored yacht before running aground.

The inebriated captain, 46-year-old Jeremy JJ Piggott, attempted to steer the vessel via remote control during the tryst, the court heard.

He’d lowered the boat’s mast to make sure a mounted surveillance camera didn’t catch the pair in the act.

Earlier this year, Piggott pleaded guilty to two counts of recklessly contravening his duty and was fined $4,000 and given a two-year good behavior bond.

In Southport Magistrates Court Tuesday, Handley copped to one count of risking the safety of a person or vessel and was given a six-month $1,000 good behavior bond.

Her barrister, David Funch, had argued that none of the damage sustained in the collision occurred during the 10 minutes that his client was admitting to negligence.

She was fired from Crystal Blue Yacht Charters following the incident, but then rehired and even promoted, her lawyer said.

On Oct. 11, Handley posted an image of one of the Crystal Blue to Facebook.

“We’ve been through so much together from the start,” she wrote. “This yacht is super special to me ..I can’t wait for its full brand new makeover! Bring on Summer and the good vibes.”