Silas Duane Boston Charged in 1978 Slaying of British Couple

Silas Duane Boston, 75, of Paradise, California, is facing federal murder charges in a cold-blooded double homicide that shocked the Caribbean nearly five decades ago. A federal grand jury in Sacramento has indicted Boston on two counts of first-degree maritime murder for the 1978 killings of a young British couple whose bodies washed up off the coast of Guatemala.

On or between June and July 1978, Boston, then a U.S. citizen and owner of the sailboat Justin B., allegedly lured the victims—both 25-year-old tourists from Manchester, England—into a fatal charter voyage. According to the indictment, he bound the man and woman, covered their heads with plastic bags, attached weights to their bodies, and dumped them overboard, drowning them in international waters. Their remains were discovered around July 8, 1978, near Punta de Manabique.

Boston was arrested last week in Paradise, California, and appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Carolyn K. Delaney. He entered a plea of not guilty. The case, long dormant, was revived by a breakthrough investigation led by the Sacramento Police Department’s Cold Case Unit, in collaboration with the FBI and Greater Manchester Police Department.

“This case is the product of diligent work by the Sacramento Police Department’s Cold Case Unit, the FBI, and the Greater Manchester Police Department,” said U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert. “Kudos are especially due to the Sacramento Police Department’s Cold Case Unit, whose persistent investigative efforts made this prosecution possible. Nothing would have happened if they hadn’t thought to consult with this office about a 38-year-old homicide in the Caribbean Sea.”

The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew D. Segal, Heiko P. Coppola, and Jeremy J. Kelley. If convicted, Boston faces a maximum statutory penalty of death or life in prison. However, the United States is not seeking the death penalty. Any sentence will be determined by the court after weighing statutory factors and Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

The charges against Silas Duane Boston are only allegations. He is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. The case marks one of the rarest applications of federal maritime murder jurisdiction and underscores the long reach of justice—even four decades later.