John Jefferson
Kyle MacMeekin and Shane Anniboli (Montgomery County Constable’s Office)
Two men in Texas were arrested this week after they were allegedly driving boats while drunk on the Fourth of July when one of their wives fell overboard and died. Kyle MacMeekin, 29, and Shane Anniboli, 44, were taken into custody Thursday evening and charged with one count each of boating while intoxicated following the tragic death of 31-year-old Jerri MacMeekin, records reviewed by Law&Crime show.
According to a news release from the Montgomery County Precinct 1 Constable’s Office, at about 8:59 p.m. on Thursday, the county dispatch center received a 911 call in reference to an adult female — later identified as Jerri MacMeekin — who had fallen off the side of a boat and into Lake Conroe near the Scott’s Ridge Boat Ramp, which is about 60 miles north of Houston, Texas. Initial reports to authorities indicated that several individuals had jumped into the water in an effort to locate the woman, but they had been unsuccessful.
Montgomery County Precinct 1 Marine Division, along with Texas Parks and Wildlife Game Wardens, the Montgomery County Hospital District, North Montgomery Fire Department, and the Conroe Fire Department responded to the area and arrived only minutes after receiving the call.
Authorities said they searched the water for “several long hours” before a team of rescue and recovery divers were able to locate Jerri MacMeekin’s body at about 11:30 p.m., the constable’s office said. She was pronounced dead on the scene.
“Due to conditions surrounding the drowning, Texas Parks and Wildlife Game Wardens have taken the primary role for this investigation with the Precinct 1 Constable’s Office assisting,” the release stated, though the specific conditions were not addressed.
Authorities told Houston CBS affiliate KHOU that the two defendants and a female jumped into the water looking for Jerri MacMeekin.
“Upon our arrival to the scene, we were able to find two of the males that had jumped overboard to save her,” said Montgomery County Pct. 1 Lake Patrol Cpt. Rosario. “At that point, we began looking for two females. One female had gotten off to help find her. We did locate her about an hour later, safe on a dock.”
Montgomery County District Attorney Brett Ligon said that Anniboli and Kyle MacMeekin were each driving separate vessels, with the MacMeekins both being on a pontoon boat, according to a report from the Houston Chronicle.
“It appears what we have are two drivers charged with boating while intoxicated and a lady who lost her life in a mishap on the lake,” Ligon told the newspaper. “This is the perils of being on a boat drinking all day, the perils of being on a crowded lake. These are the things we hope to avoid every summer when we are trying to let people know how deadly the roads and lakes are.”
Both men were released after posting bond on Friday. MacMeekin posted bond of $3,000 while Anniboli posted bond of $1,000, records show.
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