Husband’s arrest in disappearance of American woman in the Bahamas puts his account under scrutiny

CNN

By Martin Goillandeau, Elizabeth Wolfe, Chris Boyette, Dianne Gallagher, Meridith Edwards, CNN

(CNN) — The arrest of an American man whose wife has been missing for five days in the Bahamas has brought greater scrutiny to his account that his wife fell from their dinghy and was swept away by rough waters.

Brian Hooker was arrested by the Royal Bahamas Police Force on Wednesday in connection with the disappearance of his wife, 55-year-old Lynette Hooker, his lawyer confirmed to CNN.

He was arrested “for additional questioning based on some probable cause we have,” Royal Bahamas Police Force Assistant Commissioner Advardo Dames told Reuters. He was taken into custody as a suspect, Dames said, though no charges have been announced.

Brian Hooker “categorically and unequivocally denies any wrongdoing” in his wife’s disappearance, his attorney, Terrel Butler, said in a statement. “He has been cooperating with the relevant authorities as part of an ongoing investigation.”

Butler told CNN Thursday night Brian Hooker is still in custody. “He has so far been interviewed as a witness,” she said. “He has been cooperating with the 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 wife disappeared.

Now, more than a thousand miles away, Lynette Hooker’s daughter is publicly pleading for more information even as she expresses concerns over what she describes as episodes of domestic violence in the couple’s “rocky” relationship.

“I don’t want anything bad to happen to him,” the daughter, Karli Aylesworth, told CNN on Thursday. “I don’t want anything bad happened to my mom, but I just want answers.”

The US Coast Guard has opened a criminal investigation into Lynette Hooker’s disappearance.

Here is what officials and family members have said as the search for Lynette Hooker continues:

An ‘accident in unpredictable seas,’ husband says

Brian Hooker told authorities his wife fell from an 8‑foot dinghy near Elbow Cay in the Abaco Islands Saturday evening as the couple was traveling back to their yacht, according to police.

“Strong currents subsequently carried her away,” and “he lost sight of her,” police said Brian Hooker told them. Lynette Hooker was wearing the keys, also known as an engine safety lanyard, when she fell off the dinghy, which made the boat lose power, so he tried to paddle to shore, according to his account shared by police.

Brian Hooker said he last saw his wife swimming toward the shore, according to Richard Cook, fire team lead with Hope Town Volunteer Fire and Rescue.

The dinghy drifted toward Marsh Harbour, where it ultimately was beached, and Brian Hooker “traversed through the bush till he made it to Marsh Harbour Boat yards where he made contact with the local Police,” Cook said.

Hope Town Volunteer Fire and Rescue was notified at 5:12 a.m. and “searched extensively for 6 hours” but wasn’t able to find her, Cook said.

Before his arrest Wednesday, Brian Hooker provided a statement to CNN describing what he said was a boating mishap in deteriorating conditions.

“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,” Brian Hooker said in the statement. “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.”

CNN has reached out to police for more information.

Lynette Hooker wasn’t wearing a flotation device when she went overboard, according to Cook. On Tuesday, Aylesworth, told CNN Brian Hooker left her a voicemail saying authorities had found a flotation device he threw to his wife in the water.

“Hello, honey, I just got a call from Hope Town Search and Rescue, and they have found a flotation device that I threw to mom when she fell overboard,” Brian Hooker said in the voicemail shared with CNN. “They haven’t found her yet, but they can now focus all of their efforts in a smaller area.”

A friend of the couple, Daniel Danforth, said he spoke to Brian Hooker on Facebook Messenger as the search for Lynette was underway. In messages shared with CNN, Brian Hooker recounted how he became separated from his wife.

Brian Hooker said she fell “off the dingy in some choppy seeds (sic) on the way back to the sailboat.”

“The wind blew me away from her and she swam towards the sailboat and we lost sight of each other pretty quickly as it was just about sundown,” Brian Hooker said in a Facebook message to Danforth on Monday.

Brian Hooker wrote he paddled with an oar for seven hours until he washed up “behind the shore of the next island over and was able to get some help finally.”

“Our family is in hell right now,” he wrote to Danforth on Monday. He said search and rescue teams had scoured several areas and were going back out the next day. He said he planned to help with the search.

“I’m trying to take it a day at a time and keep the faith,” Brian Hooker wrote after his friend offered prayers.

‘I just want to know the truth,’ daughter says

For days, Aylesworth has been calling on law enforcement to carefully examine the circumstances surrounding the incident, expressing skepticism over her stepfather’s account.

“Why wouldn’t he drop anchor and look for her? Why did he paddle the other way?” she said to CNN on Thursday. “If my significant other fell into the water, I’d be freaking out and going after him.”

The 28-year-old said the couple cares for one another, but they have had a turbulent marriage that has at times become violent. Aylesworth said her mother previously confided that Brian Hooker choked her.

CNN has been unable to confirm the incident with law enforcement. Brian Hooker’s attorney, Butler, said in an initial statement her client denies “allegations recently made by Karli Aylesworth.”

“Public commentary that assumes a specific outcome can be detrimental to the fairness of the proceedings,” Butler said. When reached by CNN Thursday night, Butler declined to comment on Aylesworth’s allegations.

When Aylesworth heard Brian Hooker had been arrested Wednesday, she said she was struck with conflicting emotions.

“I was pretty sad about it because it’s hard to believe that someone so close to me that I’ve grown up with could possibly do this,” she said. “But I just want to know the truth. I just want answers.”

She is still holding out hope that her mother, who she described as her “number one supporter,” will be found alive.

“Part of me still hopes that she’s just on the opposite side of the island somewhere, you know, taking a break from life,” Aylesworth said. “But I feel like by now someone would have noticed her and reported her.”

Her mother and stepfather have been married for about 25 years and are experienced sailors, Aylesworth told CNN in an interview Tuesday.

The couple have been in the Bahamas for about a month, she said.

Lynette Hooker’s mother, Darlene Hamlett, has also called for answers, telling CNN in a brief statement the family is in shock and continues to hope for clarity.

“We have many unanswered questions,” Hamlett said. “We are still holding on for a positive outcome to this tragedy.”

CNN has reached out to Hamlett for comment on Brian Hooker’s arrest.

Coast Guard opens criminal investigation

Authorities launched an extensive search after Lynette Hooker was reported missing early Sunday morning involving the Royal Bahamas Police Force, the Royal Bahamas Defence Force and Hope Town Volunteer Fire & Rescue scouring the water and land near Elbow Cay.

The US Coast Guard also conducted an aerial search of the area, a spokesperson said.

After days without locating her, officials said Tuesday the effort had shifted from an active rescue to a recovery mission.

The Coast Guard on Wednesday said it had opened a criminal investigation in the case. The same day, the agency interviewed Aylesworth for two hours, her attorney said. CNN has reached out to the Coast Guard for more information on its investigation, including details on what jurisdiction it has in the Bahamas.

“Once we learned the United States Coast Guard was involved and investigating the matter we felt much better,” Marienfeld said.

The US State Department has said it is aware of reports regarding a missing American near Elbow Cay and is working with Bahamian authorities to provide assistance. The department advises travelers to exercise increased caution in the Bahamas, which is under a Level 2 travel advisory. “Boating is not well regulated. Injuries and deaths have occurred,” it said in a March 2025 advisory.

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CNN’s Taylor Romine contributed to this report.