Husband of missing American woman in the Bahamas says he’ll keep searching for her following his release

Brian Hooker shared a photo of himself and his wife, Lynette, to Facebook along with a statement prior to his arrest in connection to the disappearance of his wife. (Brian Hooker/Facebook via CNN Newsource)

In one of his first interviews since being released from police custody in the Bahamas, Brian Hooker told news networks Tuesday he is choosing to believe his wife is still alive and plans to go back out and search for her.

“No one has told me not to stop looking and I’m going to keep looking,” he told NBC on Tuesday.

Lynette Hooker, a 55-year-old mother and sailor, went missing April 4. Her husband of 25 years told authorities she fell from an 8‑foot dinghy in the rough waters near Elbow Cay in the Abaco Islands that evening as the couple was traveling back to their yacht, according to police.

The Michigan couple, both US nationals, have been sailing together for more than a decade, documenting their life at sea on social media. They were navigating the Bahamas on their yacht, Soulmate, when the incident happened.

The 10 days without his wife by his side is the longest Brian Hooker has ever been apart from her, he told NBC.

“I want people to know that Lynette is my life and we have been together almost half my life and we belong to each other and I mean to keep looking,” Brian Hooker told the outlet.

• American husband is released without charges in his wife’s disappearance in the Bahamas
• Daughter of American woman missing in the Bahamas sheds new light on couple’s marriage

Brian Hooker was arrested and questioned several times by police in connection with his wife’s disappearance before being released without charges Monday. The US Coast Guard has opened a criminal investigation into the case. Brian Hooker has denied any accusations of wrongdoing.

“I believe I’ve been told that people have lasted in the Bahamas after falling overboard for days and even weeks,” he told CBS, adding with so many islands, the search area is vast and there are many possibilities for where she could have taken refuge. He said he is “not really capable of just turning away from this.”

Before his arrest, Brian Hooker had planned to hire a plane to search for his wife by air, he told NBC.

It is unclear whether his plans have changed but his attorney, Terrel Butler, told CNN on Tuesday that Brian Hooker’s primary focus remains on the search for his wife and he is “dedicating his full emotional and physical energy toward coordinating with relevant parties to find her.”

A phone call between friends helps connect the dots

In a phone call after Lynette Hooker disappeared, Brian Hooker recounted to Blaine Stevenson, a friend and member of the boating community who knows the couple, what he maintains happened the night his wife vanished.

Brian Hooker detailed his failed attempts to reach Lynette Hooker and discussed ongoing search efforts involving the Coast Guard and Bahamian authorities in the call, which was recorded by Stevenson and shared with CNN.

When asked about the call April 11, Brian Hooker’s attorney told CNN in an email she couldn’t confirm it was her client on the recorded call.

Stevenson said he initially recorded the call to get the locations Brian Hooker mentioned as he retold the events that led up to the boating incident, since Stevenson was not familiar with the area.

Brian Hooker was not aware the conversation was being recorded, Stevenson told CNN. He published the phone call on his YouTube page after Brian Hooker was arrested because he said Brian Hooker was unable to speak for himself while detained.

“I was yelling for her the whole time,” Brian Hooker said on the call. “And I yelled to her that I lost the oar, and I threw the anchor out and anchored the dinghy, and just … I yelled. I couldn’t see her anymore.”

During the call, Brian Hooker laid out issues that he said made the situation more difficult: Neither of them wore life jackets, the waves were 3 feet high and sunset was about 10 minutes after she went overboard, leaving them in darkness. He said he saw several boats come by and used his phone flashlight and flares to get their attention, but the boats didn’t see him.

“It was a cascade of failures, and I’m never going to forgive myself for it,” he said during the call.

After an hour of calling out for his wife, Brian Hooker never heard her voice, he told Stevenson.

“I just know that I hate this boat, and if she doesn’t come back, I’m never getting on this f**king boat,” Brian Hooker said on the call. “Every single thing that’s good on it came from her, every cute idea and awesome idea. I just fix sh*t. But she really creates sh*t.”

Brian Hooker told Stevenson that the police were “of course” investigating him.

“The cops called me up and asked me how long I would be in the Bahamas,” Brian Hooker said in the call. “Until I get my wife back. That’s my goal. I cancelled everything we were going back home for and I’m going to renew my visa and stay here.”

Brian Hooker said he was trying to keep “a very stiff upper lip because she’s strong,” saying that while she isn’t an athlete, she is a regular swimmer who is determined.

Stevenson wanted those searching for Lynette Hooker to have the most relevant information available, he said, adding he believes the sailing community would be able to tell whether Brian’s account was accurate based on details from the call.

When asked whether there was anything Brian Hooker wished he’d done differently, he told ABC he will always think that.

“My one job, my one job was to look out for her, and that has not happened,” he told the network. “And I’m gonna keep looking out for her now, the best I can.”

By Alisha Ebrahimji, CNN