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 m