Bennett had experience sailing, including training on emergency procedures and had previously traveled from St. Marteen to Australia. His wife, a naturalized U.S. citizen born in Cuba, had not trained in emergency sailing procedures and had less experience, prosecutors said.

The couple had been married for three months when they set sail to St. Marteen, Puerto Rico and Cuba for a delayed honeymoon in late April. After they left Cuba on May 14, Bennett asked Hellman take over control of the boat for the night so he could go rest in the boat's cabin, according to court documents. He didn't require her to wear a life jacket, harness or personal locator, prosecutors said in the statement.

He said he woke up when the craft hit something, and Hellman was missing.

AssistantU.S. attorney Kurt Lunkenheimer said on Tuesday that Bennett "did not search for her diligently enough despite him being an experienced sailor."

The government maintained he didn't use the satellite phone to call for help. Instead, he loaded provisions and stolen silver coins onto a life raft and boarded it. Prosecutors said he called for help 45 minutes after he had woken up realizing his wife was gone.

A U.S. Coast Guard helicopter rescued him and flew him to the Florida Keys. Authorities searched for Hellman for four days, but never found her body. A Florida state judge declared Hellman dead earlier this month to clear the way for the couple's daughter to inherit her mother's estate.

"Hellman's death occurred as a result of Bennett's knowledge of circumstances that existed that