Wife accused of pinning husband between pontoon and truck said she only had three drinks but FIFTEEN booze cans were found in boat's trash

By WILKO MARTÍNEZ-CACHERO, US REPORTER Published: 21:48, 17 June 2026 | Updated: 21:51, 17 June 2026 A Washington wife accused of killing her husband while she was drunk by pinning him between a pontoon and a truck claimed she only had three drinks, only for police to find up to fifteen cans of booze. Christine Terese Mango, 50, allegedly killed her spouse John Mango, also 50, at Long Lake near Lacey, about 60 miles southwest of Seattle, on June 13 shortly before 7pm, according to The Olympian. She was allegedly trying to load the pontoon onto a trailer attached to a truck when the boat accelerated forward. That caused John to become trapped between the boat and the truck. He suffered critical injuries that took his life shortly afterwards at the Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. Christine allegedly admitted that she had been drinking alcohol with her husband while on the water, according to a probable cause statement viewed by the outlet filed two days after the incident. She claimed to have had two or three drinks over the span of four to five hours, the June 15 document added. However, law enforcement on scene that later examined the boat, truck, and trailer reported finding 10 to 15 open alcohol cans in the boat's trashcan, per the statement. Christine was taken into custody after failing several field sobriety tests. She was told about her husband's death before being taken to the Thurston County Jail. Christine Terese Mango, 50, is accused of killing her husband John Mango after pinning him between a boat and a truck on June 13 around 7pm in Long Lake near Lacey, Washington state Cameron Simper, a lieutenant with Thurston County Sheriff's Office, said that Christine appeared to have been heavily impaired when she operated the boat Christine was taken to the MultiCare Capital Medical Center in Olympia, Washington, after the crash to test her blood alcohol concentration Long Lake, which features a boat launch, is open year-round. Christine allegedly admitted that she had been drinking alcohol with her spouse while on the water Thurston County Sheriff's Office Lt. Cameron Simper said Christine had shown signs of being heavily impaired as she drove the pontoon, The Olympian reported. Christine was arrested on suspicion of homicide by watercraft and boating while intoxicated. Long Lake is open year-round and features a boat launch, according to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. The couple was observed trying to load the pontoon–style boat onto the trailer that was attached to a truck, according to the probable cause statement seen by the outlet. John was trying to direct his wife, according to witnesses. He was standing between the pontoon and the trailer. Christine was attempting to load the boat onto the trailer when witnesses claimed that they heard a loud sound. At that point, they only thought that John's hand had become trapped between the pontoon and the truck, per the statement. Christine was allegedly trying to load the pontoon onto a trailer when the boat pushed forward and pinned John, according to Thurston County authorities John Mango was airlifted to the Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, where he died from the critical injuries allegedly caused by his wife However, the reality was much grimmer and ended in John losing his life after being airlifted to the hospital. 'They stated Christine had gunned the boat forward, and when the witness went to help, he saw John had a cut on his head,' the statement read, per the outlet. After her husband's death, Christine was taken to MultiCare Capital Medical Center in Olympia to get a blood sample to test her blood alcohol concentration, the statement added. After that, Christine was taken to jail, where she remained until this week. Christine was released on bail of $10,000 and attended her preliminary appearance in Thurston County Superior Court on Monday. She is set to be arraigned on June 23 at 9am, according to Washington state court records viewed by the Daily Mail. The Daily Mail has reached out to the Thurston County Prosecuting Attorney's Office, who is prosecuting the case, as well as an email and phone number associated with Christine for further comment. As of Wednesday afternoon, court records did not list an attorney for Christine. No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. 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