Federal investigators have renewed their efforts to locate a Michigan woman who vanished in the Bahamas, prompted by fresh forensic data casting doubt on her husband’s account of the night she disappeared.
U.S. authorities have requested permission from the Bahamian government to deploy a dive team to search new areas in the Sea of Abaco for Lynette Hooker’s remains. This action follows the revelation of GPS data that appears to challenge her husband’s narrative about the events leading to her disappearance, as initially reported by CBS News and confirmed by Fox News Digital through a credible source.
According to the source, GPS data from an electronic device owned by Brian Hooker has surfaced, revealing discrepancies in his statements to investigators. The data also identifies new locations that have yet to be explored.
In addition, investigators are attempting to extract data from devices aboard the boat, including an infrared camera, which could offer further insights into Lynette Hooker’s mysterious disappearance.
SAILBOAT TRACKING DATA WENT DARK FOR 11 HOURS THE NIGHT MISSING AMERICAN VANISHED IN THE BAHAMAS
An undated photo shows Brian and Lynette Hooker sitting on a dinghy in the water. (Photo: Brian Hooker/Facebook)
A source in the Bahamas told Fox New Digital that the new search, if approved by Bahamian authorities, will focus on an area of the Sea of Abbaco with waters reaching 25-foot depths. The renewed efforts are based on GPS data from Brian Hooker’s phone, in which he was using a marine navigation app. The Hookers’ dinghy allegedly visited the same area, a U.S. official confirmed to Fox News Digital.
The data shows the device on the water, stopping in the Sea of Abaco and later returning to shore, CBS News reported. The newly obtained data provides investigators with a more precise area to search, the source reportedly added.
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Brian Hooker leaves Central Police Station in Freeport, The Bahamas, on April 13, 2026, after being released from custody. He was questioned about the disappearance of his wife, Lynette Hooker, who he says fell overboard from their dinghy earlier this month. (Matthew Symons for Fox News Digital)
Family members of Lynette Hooker confirmed to Fox News Digital that they have provided DNA samples to aid in the investigation.
LYNETTE HOOKER MISSING IN BAHAMAS: TIMELINE OF MICHIGAN WOMAN’S DISAPPEARANCE, HUSBAND’S ARREST
Additional evidence in the case continues to be processed at the FBI’s lab in Quantico, CBS News reported.
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Lynette Hooker, a 56-year-old American woman, disappeared after going overboard during a boat trip in the Bahamas, according to local officials. ((Brian Hooker/Facebook))
The development comes nearly two months after Lynnette Hooker vanished while on vacation with her husband on April 4, while also raising new questions surrounding Brian Hooker’s version of events.
WATCH: Coast Guard seizes Brian Hooker’s yacht after wife’s Bahamas disappearance
Brian Hooker initially told investigators he and his wife were on a nighttime boat ride when she fell from a small dinghy and was swept away, Fox News Digital previously reported.
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He said he was forced to paddle back to shore because his wife was carrying the ignition key when she went overboard, authorities said.
HUSBAND OF MISSING AMERICAN WOMAN WILL REMAIN IN BAHAMAS AFTER JAIL RELEASE, ATTORNEY SAYS
Lynette Hooker, 55, went missing after falling overboard during a boat trip near Elbow Cay in the Bahamas on Saturday evening, police said. ((Brian Hooker/Facebook))
WATCH: Brian Hooker leaves Freeport for Nassau after being released from jail
Despite a weekslong search, investigators were unable to find Lynette Hooker.
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Brian Hooker was detained for five days by Bahamian police after his wife disappeared, but was never charged with a crime. He subsequently returned to the U.S. to tend to his “very ill” mother, his Bahamian attorney previously said.
Last month, investigators with the Coast Guard Investigative Service seized the couple’s shared sailboat, the “Soulmate,” as it was docked in Fort Pierce, Florida, Fox News Digital reported.
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U.S. Coast Guard investigators search the boat Soulmate docked at their station in Fort Pierce, Fla., on May 13, 2026. The vessel belongs to Brian Hooker and his missing wife Lynette Hooker and was brought back to the U.S. from The Bahamas by the Coast Guard. (Obtained by Fox News Digital)
After Lynette Hooker went missing, Brian said in a Facebook post that he was “heartbroken.”
“I am heartbroken over the recent boat accident in unpredictable seas and high winds that caused my beloved Lynette to fall from our small dinghy near Elbow Cay in the Bahamas,” he wrote. “Despite desperate attempts to reach her, the winds and currents drove us further apart. We continue to search for her and that is my sole focus.”
Brian Hooker has not been charged with a crime by American authorities.
Fox News Digital reached out to Brian Hooker’s attorney for comment.
