Two liveaboard cruisers, Ralph Hendry and Kathy Brandel, are missing, feared dead, after their catamaran Simplicity was apparently stolen following a prison escape in the Caribbean.
Hendry and Brandel’s 48ft St Francis catamaran had been anchored in Grand Anse bay, Grenada, but was discovered off St Vincent, apparently abandoned with torn sails. AIS data shows the vessel left Grenada at around 2200 on Sunday, 18 February.
Three Grenadian suspects are known to have escaped from police custody on 18 February. They were rearrested on Wednesday, 21 February on St Vincent by members of Grenada’s Narcotics and Rapid Response Units.
Simplicity was discovered in Walliabou, on the western coast of St Vincent, the same day by another cruiser, who boarded the vessel and noted that its owners were not on board.
The St Vincent Coast Guard has taken possession of Simplicity and the St Vincent police are currently investigating with the US Embassy and the Grenada police department. The Royal Grenada Police Force issued a statement saying it was ‘currently working on leads that suggest that the two occupants of the yacht may have been killed in the process.’ The St Vincent Times reported that bloodstains were found on the interior.
The three men, aged 19-30, were in custody having been charged with violent offences, two charged jointly with Robbery with Violence.
Hendry and Brandel were members of the Salty Dawg Sailing Association (SDS
