The search for Lynette Hooker, who went missing as she and her husband returned to their yacht and she fell out of a dinghy, is now a “possible foreign murder of a U.S. national,” officials said.
Specialized divers with the U.S. Coast Guard arrived in Marsh Harbour this week. The agency has been granted special permission by the Bahamian government to search areas that were not previously examined, CBS News reported.
The divers are looking for evidence and Hooker’s body based on GPS data from an electronic device. They’re also at the Abaco Inn, the last place Hooker was seen.
Calling the case a “possible foreign murder of a U.S. national” does not signify a change in the investigation, according to CBS News.
Brian Hooker, Lynette Hooker’s husband, said that his wife fell from the dinghy on April 4 as they returned to the sailboat, the “Soulmate,” when rough waters hit the watercraft. He said she was last seen near Elbow Cay, Aunt Pat’s Bay and Hopetown.
But officials said GPS data did not confirm what he told investigators, adding that it was out on the water and stopped in the Sea of Abaco before returning to land.
That is where crews are searching this week, Fox News reported. The water at the location is about 25 feet deep.
Brian Hooker was arrested and held for several days before being released without being charged. He has denied wrongdoing. He returned to the U.S.
He told NBC News after his release, “I’ve never harmed Lynette, and I would never harm Lynette, and I want to find Lynette.”
His attorney said he is cooperating with the authorities, NBC News reported.
Officials seized the Soulmate after it left the Bahamas. The Coast Guard initially held it in Fort Pierce, Florida, but then took it to Fort Lauderdale, Fox News reported.
Investigators planned on removing it from the water, taking it to a warehouse and searching it, including examining the boat’s navigation system and other electronics for evidence.
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