Families of Trinidadian Fishermen Sue US Government Over Deadly Boat Strike

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Washington, D.C.: The families of two Trinidadian nationals killed in a US military missile strike last October have filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the US government, alleging the attack was unlawful and constituted extrajudicial killings.

According to the complaint filed on January 27 in the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts, 26-year-old Chad Joseph and 41-year-old Rishi Samaroo were among six people killed when a missile struck their small boat on October 14, 2025, as it travelled from Venezuela toward Trinidad and Tobago. The families say the men were returning home after fishing and farm work when the strike occurred.

The lawsuit challenges the legality of the broader U.S. campaign of strikes against boats in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean, which critics argue lack congressional authorization and violate international law, including prohibitions on extrajudicial killings. It invokes the Death on the High Seas Act and the Alien Tort Statute and seeks compensatory and punitive damages while demanding accountability for senior officials.

The Trump administration has defended the strikes as part of efforts to counter narcotics trafficking, but the families’ legal team contends there was neither armed conflict nor immediate threat justifying lethal force under international law