New Netflix Documentary Revisits Mystery of Deadly 2016 Carman Family Boating Tragedy
- Scott Way
- 2 hours ago
- 6 min read
Nathan Carman was rescued off the coast of Cape Cod after seemingly having been adrift for seven days. His story, an incredible tale of survival and tragedy, made headlines around the world. But soon after, the details of his tragic fishing trip with his mother fell under scrutiny. The mystery would make him a suspect not only in the death of his mother, but in the deaths of others, too.
Nathan Carman was 22 years old when he went on a fishing trip with his mother on September 17th, 2016. Longtime boaters, Nathan's mother Linda, 54, told friends they were heading head to Block Island, roughly 12 miles off the southern coast of mainland Rhode Island. She wasn't known to love fishing, but Linda did love spending time with Nathan and found their trips were a chance to calm their tense relationship.
Mother and son arrived at Ram Point Marina in South Kingstown, RI in the early morning hours of Sept 17th, and hopped aboard their 32-foot aluminum fishing boat Chickenpox. Driving separate vehicles, Nathan arrived after his mother, lugging a cooler of bait in the bed of his pickup, which he forgot to bring onboard before heading out. The pair left the marina shortly after 3 a.m. local time.
Linda was never seen again. Nathan was rescued by a Chinese freighter seven days later on September 25th, adrift in a life raft 100 miles (160 km) from their last known location.
In subsequent interviews with police, Nathan claimed their destination was in fact 'the Canyons,' referring to Block Canyon, a significantly longer, and more dangerous, underwater canyon and prime fishing grounds 70 nautical miles from their original destination of Block Island.
As the investigation ramped up, the details of Nathan's story drew increasing speculation. Their mother-son fishing trip became the catalyst for a larger investigation into the Carman family as a whole, including the murder of Nathan's grandfather John Chakalos in 2013, and whether Nathan's behavior surrounding both events was evidence of an innocent albeit troubled young man with autism, or whether a darker character lay beneath driven by greed, bitterness, and a sense of entitlement that led to the deaths of three people, not just one.
The Netflix documentary, The Carman Family Deaths, released on November 19th, takes a deep dive into Nathan Carman, his strange behavior surrounding both events, and whether the answers about what happened to Linda, how their boat sank, and if Nathan was really adrift in the Atlantic Ocean as he'd claimed will ever come to fruition.
A Fishing Trip Gone South
After Linda and Nathan left the marina during the early morning hours of Sept 17th, Linda was expected to check in later the same day. When she failed to radio in as scheduled, the Coast Guard launched a large-scale search and rescue operation covering more than 62,000 square miles (160,000 sq km). No debris, no vessel, and no trace of Linda were ever found.
Seven days later, the freighter Orient Lucky spotted a life raft 100 miles south of Martha’s Vineyard. Inside was Nathan. According to the ship's captain Zhao Hengdong, the weather that day was nasty with rough seas and high winds.
As the Orient Lucky pulled alongside, Nathan was able to dive into the frigid Atlantic water and swim to a life ring thrown by the ship's crew. After they pulled him alongside, he had the strength to climb up the rope unaided. After seven days at sea, he was in shockingly good health, showing no signs of hypothermia or dehydration.
Nathan told his rescuers their boat began taking on water suddenly and went down within minutes. He claimed it happened the first day of their trip. He said he didn't have time to make a distress call.
"I know I wasn't responsible for the boat sinking," he told Linzie Janis from ABC News in 2016, three days after being rescued. "I know that I wasn't responsible for anything that resulted from the boat sinking. I know I wasn't responsible for my mom's death. But at the same time I feel like I was responsible for my mom and I being out there and in the situation. If I hadn't asked my mom to go fishing with me that weekend, she would still be alive with me today."
Investigators quickly raised concerns. It soon came out that Nathan had made modifications to the boat in the weeks before the outing, removing the trim tabs from Chickenpox and performing work to the forward bulkhead. A marine surveyor later described the vessel as being in “poor condition.” Nathan’s failure to make a distress call, despite having a working VHF radio on board, also became a focal point.
Questions deepened when Nathan filed an $85,000 insurance claim for the loss of the boat. The insurer denied it, citing discrepancies and what it called “material misrepresentations.” Though no criminal charges were filed at the time, the investigative posture toward Nathan shifted from search-and-rescue miracle to potential suspect.
The Past Revisited
In the weeks and months that followed, scrutiny of Nathan's behavior led back to another unresolved death in the family. On December 20th, 2013, Linda’s father, 87-year-old real estate developer John Chakalos, was found murdered in his bed at his home in Windsor, Connecticut. He'd been shot in the head at point blank range with a high-powered rifle. There were no signs of forced entry. Nothing was stolen. There were speculations of a mob hit, but the details of the murder didn't match mob tactics. The use of a rifle was particularly unusual. Police records indicated Nathan had dinner with Chakalos the night before. There was no evidence anyone had seen or heard from Chakalos from the time he reportedly had dinner with Nathan to the time he was discovered the following morning. Investigators later learned Nathan had purchased a rifle matching the type used in the killing several weeks earlier, but when pressed on the matter he claimed the firearm had gone missing. Chakalos was a prominent, even somewhat feared, man in the local community, not to mention a self-made millionaire with an estate worth an estimated $42 million. There was motive, but no evidence.
As investigators began pouring over both the details of the boat sinking and the death of Nathan's grandfather once again, they noted Nathan had damaged or replaced his computer’s hard drive and removed the GPS unit from his car shortly after his grandfather's death. A draft arrest warrant had been prepared at one point, but prosecutors concluded the evidence fell short of a charge.
Family members also pointed to strained relationships between Nathan and his relatives following his grandfather's death. Civil lawsuits filed by his aunts accused Nathan of seeking access to portions of the family estate he was not entitled to. Nathan denied wrongdoing. The animosity in the family was public and palpable.
The Federal Case and Nathan Carman’s Death
In May 2022, federal prosecutors finally indicted Nathan on charges including the murder of his mother Linda, mail fraud, and wire fraud. The indictment alleged that Nathan had intentionally sunk the boat and killed his mother in order to obtain an inheritance estimated at tens of millions of dollars, tied to the Chakalos family assets. Prosecutors also alleged he had previously murdered his grandfather for the same reason.
Nathan pleaded not guilty. His attorney argued that the government’s case was circumstantial and that Nathan’s autism contributed to his often-misinterpreted behavior. His father, Clark Carman, publicly defended him and said he believed the sinking was accidental.
Nathan was awaiting trial at the Cheshire County Jail in New Hampshire when, on June 15, 2023, he was found unresponsive in his cell. He was pronounced dead shortly afterward. Authorities ruled there was no evidence of foul play. A note found in the cell contained case-related details but, according to his attorney, was “not a suicide note.”
With Nathan’s death, the federal charges were dismissed. In probate court, Linda was legally declared dead.
An Investigation Without Closure
The case now stands as uniquely complex murder-mystery with a maritime bent, not to mention a media phenomenon kickstarted by the Netflix documentary. Neither Linda Carman’s disappearance nor the murder of John Chakalos are solved, and Nathan never claimed responsibility before his own death. To this day, Linda’s body and the Chickenpox have never been recovered. They likely never will.
In the documentary, the divide between the Chakalos and Carman families is clear. Some are convinced Nathan was responsible for both deaths. Others believe he has been consistently mischaracterized due to a quirky personality and an unusual way of showing emotion.
The speculation about how Chickenpox could have sank remains, and whether Nathan was truly adrift for seven days as he claimed. There is no way to verify where he and the vessel were between Sept 18th, when he claims the boat sank, and September 25th when he was rescued. Adrenaline may have played a part in his burst of strength during the rescue, or perhaps he hadn't been adrift that long.
What is certain is that two deaths — and Nathan’s own — remain an ocean-bound mystery. Why Nathan killed his mother and grandfather, and how the Chickenpox sank, will remain unanswered unless the Atlantic deep gives up her secrets, and that isn't likely to happen.
You can watch the trailer for The Carman Family Deaths on Netflix below:
