A retired U.S. Navy submarine commander who spent his summer moored in Nantucket Harbor is now facing three counts of rape and two counts of indecent assault and battery, accused of assaulting a 22-year-old employee aboard his yacht after his wife and young son left the island. Christian Bradley Williams, 54, of Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, pleaded not guilty to all charges on September 4, 2026, in Nantucket District Court.
Williams commanded the nuclear-powered attack submarine USS Springfield beginning in 2012 before retiring to Florida, according to St. Johns Citizen. His yacht, the Chimera, registered out of Coral Gables, had been moored in Nantucket Harbor since June 25, 2026, according to a police report obtained by Nantucket Current. Per The Boston Globe, the vessel had been occupied by Williams, his wife, their toddler son, and the boy's 19-year-old nanny until August 9, when the family flew back to Florida so the child could start preschool, leaving Williams alone aboard when the alleged victim returned.
A Dinner Invitation and a Debt She Didn't Owe
The 22-year-old woman had arrived on Nantucket on June 1 to begin working for the Nantucket Launch Company, according to legal filings cited by the Globe. Nantucket Launch Company owner Max Shapiro, 24, had arranged for her to live aboard Williams's yacht in exchange for running the generator and doing laundry — an arrangement that provided her with lodging aboard the yacht.
On August 9, Williams invited the woman to dinner and told her to put on a dress for a nice outing, according to the police report. He reportedly told her he did not want his wife to know they were going, and declined a call from his wife during the evening. The two dined at Cru, a waterfront restaurant on Straight Wharf, according to police report details cited by Daily Voice.
Dizziness, Then a Blackout
According to the police report, Williams withdrew roughly $500 from an ATM and gave it to the woman, then asked her to cover the restaurant bill, which came to about $250, telling her he would pay her back and calling her his “sugar mommy for the evening.” Over about four hours, the woman drank her third alcoholic beverage of the night; after one drink Williams gave her, she reported blackening vision and severe dizziness, per the police report.
She refused when Williams asked to kiss her, according to the filings. Police documents state that Williams held her down with his full body weight and continued to do so even after she told him she was his employee, reportedly telling her he would be angry if he missed his chance with her and that he was going to take her to bed. She told investigators she woke up hours later naked and bleeding beside him.
Employer's Response Disputed
The woman told Shapiro she had awakened naked and bleeding next to Williams, but according to the police report, he responded by asking why she was telling him and told her to get to work. Shapiro has disputed that account, telling the New York Post that her description of their dockside conversation was inaccurate and that he was cooperating fully with police, a denial reported by St. Johns Citizen.
The woman detected soreness and physical evidence of the alleged assault and underwent a sexual assault examination at Nantucket Cottage Hospital. The evidence kit processed there yielded male DNA, with forensic results returned September 1, 2026, according to police documentation cited by St. Johns Citizen. She later traveled by afternoon ferry to Hyannis, where her father picked her up, and she quit her job, according to the Globe.
Bail, Denials and What Comes Next
Williams was arraigned on September 4, 2026, and held on $50,000 cash bail or $500,000 surety before his attorney told the court his wife was bringing cash bail to the island, according to Nantucket Current. Williams's attorney, Thomas A. Kokonowski, said the allegations were completely and utterly denied. He is due back in Nantucket court on October 26.
Under Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 265, Section 22, a conviction for non-aggravated rape carries a maximum of up to 20 years in state prison, while indecent assault and battery on a person over 14 under Section 13H carries up to 5 years, according to legal analysis from Sweeney & Associates, LLC. The case's future course remains an open question.
The arrest is another serious criminal case in Nantucket this year, as previously reported by Hoodline.
