The search for two missing boaters off the coast of Naples, Florida, has been called off after four days of extensive search efforts.
The U.S. Coast Guard called off the search for Fort Myers attorney Randall Spivey, 57, and his nephew Brandon Billmeier, 33, at sunset on Monday, Dec. 22.
The relatives went missing on December 19, and the search spanned approximately 6,700 square miles of ocean, officials reported.
“After the utmost consideration and careful consideration of all factors involved in this incident, the Coast Guard has made the difficult decision to discontinue active search operations,” said Capt. Cory Sargent, commander of the St. Petersburg Coast Guard.
“There is no more difficult decision to make than calling off a search. We are deeply grateful to our crews, partners, and volunteers across this community who carried out this massive search with the utmost professionalism, tenacity, and compassion. Our deepest sympathies go out to the families and friends of Mr. Spivey and Mr. Billmeier at this very difficult time.”
Brandon Billmeyer and Randy Spivey remain missing
Volunteers from across the southeastern United States have joined the search for men who went missing during a fishing trip about 110 miles off the Naples coast earlier this month.
“This is heartbreaking, but Brandon and Randy would never want anyone to put their lives in jeopardy, and we know they want this decision to be respected,” Deborah Billmeyer, Brandon Billmeyer’s wife, said in a Facebook post.
The FBI is leading the missing persons investigation.
Randall Spivey’s wife, Tricia Spivey, said Spivey and Billmeyer went on a fishing trip about 100 miles off the Naples coast in southwest Florida. When they did not return, the family contacted the Coast Guard.
The men were aboard a 42-foot freeman boat named Unstop-a-Bull, said Luis Garcia, a watchdog with the Coast Guard in St. Petersburg.
The Coast Guard later used GPS coordinates from the boat’s spot-tracking device to find the boat floating upright in a bay about 110 miles off the coast of Naples near Marco Island and Flamingo, but there was no indication that anyone on the boat was missing, Tricia Spivey said.
Two life jackets were missing from the boat, leading the family to believe that Spivey and Billmeyer were wearing life vests.
A drifting boat is discovered
According to the USCG, a Coast Guard helicopter crew spotted a Freeman Boatworks 42LR vessel named “Unstopp-A-Bull” adrift in gear about 110 miles west of Fort Myers around 12 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 20.
Spivey’s wife said GPS coordinates from the boat’s spot tracking device led them to the location near Marco Island and Flamingo.
Rescue swimmers descended, killed the engines, and berthed the ship for safety.
“The boat was in gear,” said Riley Perkowski, a public affairs specialist with the U.S. Coast Guard Southeast District. “We sent out a swimmer and the swimmer deployed an anchor to keep the boat from continuing to move.”
Search area for missing Florida boater was vast
On Monday, Dec. 22, search teams were focused on a 20-mile-wide area about 160 miles off the Naples coast, according to a statement from Spivey and Billmeier.
The Coast Guard said crews searched by air and sea before suspending the search pending new information.
“As a family, we are grateful for the resources and volunteers who stepped up to help,” the statement said. “The support, time and effort given means more to us than words can express.”
Who is Randy Spivey?
Tricia Spivey said her husband, a prominent Fort Myers attorney, is well-liked and well-liked.
“He dedicated his life to helping others as a lawyer and helping them in their time of need,” his wife said, adding that he and his nephew are avid fishermen. “That’s why it’s so moving that so many people are now stepping up to look for him.”
In a Dec. 22 statement, Spivey and the Billmeyer family described Spivey as “an incredibly devoted and beloved husband and father.”
“He would do anything for his family,” the statement said. “He also dedicated his 30 years as a lawyer in Southwest Florida to helping injured people. We are so grateful to everyone in the community who helped bring him home.”
Who is Brandon Billmeyer?
Billmeyer recently got married, according to the statement.
“Brandon is also following in his uncle’s footsteps as an attorney helping injured people in Florida.” “He’s a newlywed. We all need to bring Brandon and Randy home because he loves them so much.”
Shiner Law Group released a statement on Dec. 22 regarding the disappearance of Billmeier, a Boca Raton-based attorney who had been with the firm since August 2023.
“This situation is surreal. As the search continues, we continue to pray and hope for the safe return of Brandon and Randy. We respectfully ask the public to keep Brandon Billmeyer and Randy Spivey in their thoughts and prayers.”
Spivey was described as a white male, 6 feet 1 inch tall, 245 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes, according to the Lee County Sheriff’s Office. He was last seen wearing khaki pants and a dark shirt. Billmeyer was described as a white male, 6 feet 2 inches tall, 250 pounds, with strawberry hair and brown eyes.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to contact the Coast Guard’s St. Petersburg Division at 866-881-1392.
Contributor: Tom Elia, Palm Beach Post
