Bizarre Galveston Mystery
Bizarre Galveston mystery: Rescued family vanishes, leaving behind sinking sailboat and a fake trail
A strange tale has unfolded following the rescue of a couple and seven children from a sailboat sinking into Galveston Bay. Three weeks following the rescue, the family is now missing and police investigators believe they were lied to.
"Just got this strange feeling something's not right," Sgt. Louis Trochesset of Galveston County Sheriff's Office Marine Division tells KHOU. "I've heard they were going to the Virgin Islands, we've heard they were going down to Mexico."
Volunteer firefighters from San Leon rescued the individuals from the partially-submerged sailboat. The youngest child on board was around a year old.
"We've yet to hear from them," Trochesset says. "They've sort of vanished."
According to Galveston County Sheriff's deputies, the last time they saw the family was at the hospital where the youngest child was examined.
"We've yet to hear from them. They've sort of vanished."
"She told me they were on a month-long vacation. They came down here and purchased a sailboat," Trochesset says.
Deputies say the family paid cash for the boat, which was bought in Kemah only six days before it flipped over. A strange twist in the story soon followed as it was discovered that the couple gave deputies fictitious names after claiming they had left their IDs in the capsized boat.
Three weeks following the rescue, the boat remains in the water and neighbors say no one has checked on it. Concern have also been raised about the safety having the boat just tipped on its side in the water.
"It's all going to leak somewhere and eventually it's going to leak into the Bay," neighbor David Boles tells KHOU.
Due to a law which requires a 20-day waiting period to see if the owners return, the boat cannot be moved or inspected for clues.
"We would just like their whereabouts so we can touch base with them and make sure everything is all right," Trochesset says of the missing family.
Watch KHOU's full report on the mystery: