NEW YORK - A man has been arrested after a speedboat passing by the Statue of Liberty in New York flipped over at the weekend killing a woman and a baby, police said.

The vessel capsized late on Aug 8, killing a 27-year-old mother and five-month-old baby, said police, who confirmed that 12 people were rescued from the water near Liberty Island.

Manuel Hernandez, 46, was arrested on 13 counts of reckless endangerment, officers confirmed later.

“The defendant was arrested over the weekend and is now in federal custody. Further information will be provided shortly,” federal prosecutors told AFP on Aug 10.

An Italian restaurant in Manhattan, Il Punto, said the woman, Sara Sanchez, was the wife of one of its employees, and that their baby, Antonella Garcia, was the second fatality.

The business said it had launched an online fund-raiser for Sanchez’s husband, Andres Garcia.

“While trying to process the unimaginable loss of Sara and baby Antonella, Andres must now find the strength to move forward and be there for their six-year-old son, Salvador, who has also suffered a heartbreaking loss,” said the fund-raiser page.

The coastguard did not return a request for comment. AFP

The Statue of Liberty is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor in New York, in the United States.

The speedboat was passing New York’s Statue of Liberty when it capsized on Aug 8. PHOTO: TRAFALGAR

Man arrested after speedboat flips near Statue of Liberty, killing two