Lynette Hooker’s daughter has criticized her stepfather after he left the Bahamas while authorities are still searching for the missing woman.
It shows he’s “not a man of his word,” says Lynette’s daughter, Carly Aylesworth, 28. He told CBS News Wednesday after Brian Hooker left the island in order to deal with a family emergency in the United States.
A source said Fox News Digital Brian, 59, has arrived in Atlanta, Georgia, and his attorney, Terrell Butler, said he has returned to care for his “very ill” mother.
This is despite him claiming his “sole focus” was finding his wife of almost 25 years – who disappeared on April 4.
“My sole focus is finding Lynette, no matter how unlikely or unlikely that may seem,” he said.
“The search for Lynette has been halted due to the investigation. I realize that investigations must be conducted, but I will go as quickly as I can to start finding Lynette.”
Brian, who was released without charges on Monday after being in custody for five days, said he intends to remain in the Bahamas until his visa expires.
Carley plans to travel to the Caribbean country on Thursday to join authorities in the search, which could be scaled back as early as today.
Authorities ran out of places to search after considering “tides and winds,” Fox News reported, citing an NBC report.
The U.S. Coast Guard, which had already begun a criminal investigation, sent its K-9 team to join the search, and Edvardo Dames, assistant commissioner of the Royal Bahamas Police, He told ABC News.
Brian has always claimed his wife, 55, fell overboard from the couple’s dinghy during a late-night trip back to their yacht Soulmate.
He has always claimed his wife was swept away by the currents – but Carly, who has previously called for a “full and complete investigation”, fears something more sinister is happening at sea, referring to Brian’s history of alleged domestic abuse.
Brian has strongly rejected such accusations.
“I said I would never hurt Lynette, I would never hurt Lynette, and I wanted to find Lynette.” He told NBCHe recounts what he told the police during his interrogation.
“It’s been 10 days. It’s been a long time. I don’t think I’ve been away from her in 25 years for this long,” he said, crying.
Brian, who “categorically and unequivocally” denies any wrongdoing in his wife’s disappearance, said he would try to charter a boat and plane so he could conduct his own search.
“I won’t be able to stop looking,” he said. He told CBS News.
He also revealed that he wants to believe Lynette is still alive.
“I think I was told that people remained in the Bahamas after falling overboard for days and even weeks,” he said.
“There’s a lot of islands, there’s a lot of sandbars, little atolls, bits of land. Of course you think of alternatives to that, but I’m not really able to get away from that.”