Collier County Man Arrested And Charged With Murder On The High Seas

Fort Myers, FL – Casey Lowell Hickok (32, Copeland) has been arrested and charged by criminal complaint with second-degree murder within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States. Hickok made his initial appearance in federal court yesterday afternoon and was ordered detained pending trial. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison.

According to the complaint, while aboard a commercial fishing vessel, Hickok was witnessed bludgeoning a sleeping member of the boat’s crew to death with a spare boat alternator, which he later threw off the vessel. At the time, the vessel was in the Gulf of Mexico, approximately 66 nautical miles west of Marco Island. 

A criminal complaint is merely an allegation that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

This case is being investigated by the U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service and the Lee County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Simon Eth.