Court Hearing for Boater Whose Relatives Died Mysteriously

Providence, r.i. — Lawyers for a man suspected of killing his millionaire grandfather in 2013 met with a judge on Monday in a lawsuit over the sinking of his boat with his mother onboard.

Nathan Carman’s boat sank last year during a fishing trip with his mother. He was rescued after a week on a life raft, but his mother was never found and is now presumed dead.

Since then, Carman has been at the center of a number of legal matters. He has denied any involvement in his grandfather’s killing and has said he didn’t sabotage the boat.

Carman’s insurance company is refusing to pay an $85,000 claim for the boat, saying that Carman made “incomplete, improper, and faulty repairs” to the vessel the day before it sank and that he knew it was “unseaworthy.”

Lawyers for Carman and his insurer met on Monday behind closed doors with a federal magistrate judge in Rhode Island to discuss the case.

Carman, who lives in Vernon, Vt., was not seen at the courthouse, and both sides declined to comment after the hearing.

A court filing later on Monday showed the judge issued a pretrial order that sets deadlines for discovery and other pretrial matters for Carman and his insurer.