The husband of a woman who vanished in the Bahamas after falling from a dinghy described the incident as a “cascade of failures” in a phone conversation with a friend.
On April 7, Brian Hooker, 58, recounted the events leading up to the disappearance of his wife, Lynette Hooker, 55, who reportedly fell overboard two days earlier. During the call, he spoke calmly about the unfolding tragedy.
“It was a cascade of failures, and it’s something I’ll never forgive myself for,” he confessed to his unidentified friend.
Hooker explained they had stayed out too long, left after dark, and neglected to wear life jackets, among other issues.
The couple had embarked on an outing in an eight-foot motorboat from Hope Town on April 5, but only Brian Hooker returned.
He informed authorities that as they were making their way back to their yacht, Soulmate, Lynette fell overboard with the boat keys. This caused the engine to shut off, leaving him no choice but to paddle to the shore.
But in a shock twist, he was detained earlier this week by Bahamian police and remains in their custody.
‘She basically just bounced off the dinghy in the middle of a little blow,’ he can be heard telling his friend in a phone call verified by CBS.
Brian and Lynette Hooker had been married for more than two decades and lived in Onsted, Michigan
Hooker told police that he planned to stay in the the Bahamas until his wife was returned to him
The couple had been making their way back to their sailboat Soulmate in an 8ft dinghy when Lynette fell overboard
The sun set ten minutes after she fell overboard, Hooker said, making it difficult for him to search for her. Neither of them were wearing life jackets at the time.
‘The wind blew us apart so fast that I think she tried to swim back to our sailboat which was probably 1,000 yards,’ he added.
‘I yelled to her that I lost the oar and I threw the anchor out and anchored the dingy.’
Hooker told his friend he quickly lost sight of his wife and threw her a flotation cushion in hopes that she would grab onto it. Authorities are still looking for the cushion.
He said it was hours before he could get back to the island to ask for help and even longer before police arrived to assist him.
The Royal Bahamas Police said Hooker was questioned ‘on probable cause’ and was taken into custody as a suspect in connection with his wife’s disappearance, but he has not been formally charged.
Hooker seems adamant that he had nothing to do with it.
‘The cops called me today and they asked how long I would be in the Bahamas,’ he told his friend over the phone. ‘Until I get my wife back.’
‘That’s my goal, I canceled everything we were going back home for,’ he added. ‘I’m gonna renew my visa and stay here.’
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Lynette Hooker was said to have fallen from a dinghy as she and her husband Brian were making their way back to their sailboat, Soulmate
Authorities said Hooker paddled to shore and alerted someone about the incident early Sunday
Hooker’s attorney Terrel Butler said his client ‘categorically and unequivocally denies any wrongdoing’ in his wife’s disappearance, saying he ‘has been cooperating with the relevant authorities as part of an ongoing investigation.’
In a statement to the Daily Mail, Brian Hooker said he is ‘heartbroken’ by his wife’s disappearance, describing the incident as a ‘boat accident in unpredictable seas and high winds.’
‘Despite desperate attempts to reach her, the winds and currents drove us further apart,’ Hooker said. ‘We continue to search for her and that is my sole focus.’
It was announced Tuesday that the search-and-rescue mission for Lynette had become a recovery mission.
‘She was the best part of this relationship, frankly,’ he added in the call to his friend.
Lynette’s daughter Karli Aylesworth and mother Darlene Hamlett are skeptical of Hooker’s account, each calling for an investigation into her death.
Hamlett said she was ‘glad to hear’ Hooker had been arrested and claimed he failed to notify her of her daughter’s disappearance.
‘It would be a miracle if [she’s rescued], but I’m still counting on one,’ Hamlett added.
Hooker said his wife was ‘the best part of this relationship’ in a call to his friend
Aylesworth said ‘prior issues’ lead her to believe a ‘thorough investigation’ was necessary.
‘If this truly was an accident, I can understand and live with it,’ she told Fox News Digital.
‘However, there needs to be an intensive review of the facts and circumstances of this tragic incident before that can be determined.’
The investigation remains ongoing as the search for Lynette continues.
The couple had been married for more than two decades and lived in Onsted, Michigan.
They traveled often, frequently posting social media pictures of their adventures.
The Daily Mail contacted the Royal Bahamas Police for comment.
