FL FL - Isabella Hellmann, 41, catamaran off Cay Sal, SE of the FL Keys, 14 May 2017 #1 *GUILTY*

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Gardenista said:
Wonder what her life insurance situation is
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JMO
It is very important investigators look at those things.

There are things about this incident that cause concern and other things that could have been just a tragic accident. It could go either way at this point until investigators make a determination.

Investigators need to look at:

-Was there life insurance policy or any recent changes to it?

-Timing of incident. He was rescued in very early morning hours in the dark and so what was she doing topside at that time while he was not topside? What was he doing at that time?

-The boat did not sink and was found by rescuers. How far away from boat was the lifeboat?

-He said they hit something. They need to get the boat and look for marks underneath it. There should be some marks on whatever they hit.

-Did anybody report any recent squabbles or trouble the couple was having? Money issues?

-Listen to any communications he may have had to rescuers.

-Pull his computers and see if he looked up any recent cases of missing at sea or accidents or anything suspicous that could lead to him possibly doing something on purpose.

-I found the case I was talking about that is very similar to this. All computers and phones he had should be scanned to see if he researched anything like this case.

http://www.pressherald.com/2016/09/...a-week-found-alive-in-raft-off-massachusetts/


I hope investigators thoroughly research this case because there is quite a few things that could make the case seem suspicous.

Accidents happen but his/her luck would have had to have been really bad for things to go down the way it is being described.

I struggle to see how if the boat hit something how he could not have run topside and called out for her and somehow saved her. The way the story is being told is he did not find her anywhere and no sign of her. That is the part that does not make sense if they hit something. Unless she was knocked out when overboard. That really is the only way and I am not sure anything could have hit her head unless she maybe hit the same rock going overboard. If so then he should have had a flashlight to still see her in the water I would think.

Unless someone sinks right away if knocked out. I am not sure if people sink if knocked out. I know bodies can sink but not sure what happens when someone first goes in water and is knocked out.

I know a person can sink if all air out of lungs. We used to do that in the pool so I guess its possible she sank if all air out of lungs. But a body will naturally breath even if knocked out unless she inhaled water and then drowned I suppose.

So many questions. Investigators really have a lot of work to do and I hope they do a good job with this one.
 
U.S. Coast Guard crews continued to search Tuesday. In 48 hours, the agency said, it’s searched an area of more than 3,400 square miles.

She was last seen Sunday night when the boat left Cuba.

Bennett told authorities he awoke at 1:30 a.m. Monday after the boat struck an object about 30 miles west of Cay Sal, the westernmost island in the Bahamas.

He said he came topside to find Hellman gone.

After Bennett transmitted a call for help, the Coast Guard found him in a raft about 1,000 yards from the catamaran, which was partially submerged.

The catamaran is upside down, floating in about 4,800 feet of water in an area that’s about 70 miles southeast of Key West and about 100 miles east-northeast of Havana. Divers have not yet gone inside it, which would be a dangerous proposition, but did bang on the hull and feel confident no one is alive in it.

It’s not in a shipping lane but noted the ocean has all sort of debris that a moving boat could strike without warning, especially in the dark.

The Coast Guard has marked the location of the boat and broadcast a “navigation hazard” warning. It ultimately will be up to the owner to remove it.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/l...gger-area-than-county/GKNsp1yIIdu2O3fVL929YO/
 
JerseyGirl said:
U.S. Coast Guard crews continued to search Tuesday. In 48 hours, the agency said, it’s searched an area of more than 3,400 square miles.

She was last seen Sunday night when the boat left Cuba.

Bennett told authorities he awoke at 1:30 a.m. Monday after the boat struck an object about 30 miles west of Cay Sal, the westernmost island in the Bahamas.

He said he came topside to find Hellman gone.

After Bennett transmitted a call for help, the Coast Guard found him in a raft about 1,000 yards from the catamaran, which was partially submerged.

The catamaran is upside down, floating in about 4,800 feet of water in an area that’s about 70 miles southeast of Key West and about 100 miles east-northeast of Havana. Divers have not yet gone inside it, which would be a dangerous proposition, but did bang on the hull and feel confident no one is alive in it.

It’s not in a shipping lane but noted the ocean has all sort of debris that a moving boat could strike without warning, especially in the dark.

The Coast Guard has marked the location of the boat and broadcast a “navigation hazard” warning. It ultimately will be up to the owner to remove it.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/l...gger-area-than-county/GKNsp1yIIdu2O3fVL929YO/
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Great extra information.

JMO
The first two bolded items really make this lean towards a real accident because its not like he stayed near the boat till rescuers arrived. And I am not sure if a single person could turn over the boat on their own so it seems they really could have hit something that flipped the boat.

The last bolded item surprises me and has me concerned that investigators are not going to look for marks that could prove they hit something. I know things like that cost a lot of money but it seems they would want the boat to investigate that.

It would be interesting to know if a single person could flip a boat like that on their own or not. Maybe by purposely putting the sail the wrong way maybe it would be easy to flip it? Not sure as I have never sailed before.

This case is very interesting and I really think the odds are about 50/50 and could go either way. It is amazing how about 1/2 the things points to an accident and the other half has concerns.

The recently married part really stands out because we have seen so many other cases where right after a legal marriage then the spouse ends up dead. I can think of one right off the top.

Sorry no links but the one where the man was scuba diving on their honeymoon and it was alleged he rigged her air lines and video shows her sinking to bottom and he didnt go to help her.
 
I had it wrong about why the boat was submerged. From the articles he first hit something and was able to go topside to look for her and then boat took on water. So it only sunk after he must have gotten on the life raft.

Its not like the boat flipped right as they hit something. It sunk sometime after that.

Which means that boat should have some serious damage that could be seen. I would think a simple check of the boats hull even while in the water could find damage like that.

http://www.wptv.com/news/region-s-p...ray-beach-woman-missing-at-sea-in-the-bahamas
 
So, if Bennett was below deck, Hellman must have been topside steering the vessel? At 1:30 AM???

Something doesn't smell right.

IMHO
 
wildebeest said:
So, if Bennett was below deck, Hellman must have been topside steering the vessel? At 1:30 AM???

Something doesn't smell right.

IMHO
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Yes, from the post above yours--she was at the helm and this happened the day they left:

coast guard spokesman confirmed Isabella and her Husband Lewis Bennett left Havana, Cuba at 5:30 Sunday evening in their 37-foot catamaran.

The Coast Guard says at around 8 p.m., Bennett claims he went down to the lower deck to go sleep.

He says at the time, Isabella was at the helm of the boat wearing her life vest.

http://www.wptv.com/news/region-s-p...ray-beach-woman-missing-at-sea-in-the-bahamas
 
A neighbor said:

“I knew she was going on a trip with her boyfriend or husband, I'm not sure what they were, about two months and before she went the baby got sick, so she cancelled the trip.” The neighbor said he rarely saw her husband at the apartment.

“He apparently had a lot of different types of jobs. He was a plumber. I think he was from England or Ireland, I’m not sure, but he was never here . Then he was the captain of a boat, but he was always doing a million different things he told me."

The neighbor said he has not seen Isabella’s husband return to their apartment since Isabella has gone missing.

http://cbs12.com/news/local/neighbors-worried-about-delray-beach-woman-missing-at-sea
 
Just had a thought. He told the Coast Guard she was wearing a life vest. If that's the case, she would be floating.
 
The cat was an ocean-going vessel; meaning it was sturdy, and hard to roll. It's meant to take quite a beating and still remain upright. You can barrel roll if you nose-dive the bow with your sails, however.

While the area immediately around Cay Sal is indeed somewhat rocky, the water is very shallow - so usually calm enough there for a safe harbor.

The area where the vessel was located was in basically the middle of the ocean; she did not scrape bottom there. I do wonder - was she under sail, or motor? The only thing that comes to mind is that the area is known for its active shipping lanes, and I suppose it's possible she encountered a large cargo ship, but I would suspect both she and the cargo ship would have radar and would see one another.

There are rogue waves out in that area that are quite common for some reason, but I've experienced these in a 28' open-fisherman and survived just fine... There is a good deal of flotsam in that area as well, but again, if it was large enough to destroy the cat, it would have been seen on radar. Even if she did not have radar, I doubt she would have been sailing in complete darkness; undoubtedly there would have been a spotlight being used to ascertain what was ahead...

Isabella was at the helm for a while; when I worked on boats a watch was usually no more than 4-6 hours. After that you do start to get very tired, and with sailing, there's always work to do.

Anyway, nothing sits right about this one with me - Isabella was wearing her life jacket, so unless she was eaten by a shark, a giant squid (seriously), or else pulled down to the abyss by some piece of debris she should indeed be found floating. It should be noted that the Coast Guard in that area have a ton of experience finding people lost at sea, and in dealing with all kinds of those issues - I know they'll figure out exactly what happened.

Remember, if you want to visit Cay Sal, you need to sail to Bimini first to obtain the proper paperwork, and you need to bring your passport with you. If you choose to try and visit 'under the radar' and are caught you'll be in some serious trouble. Also, the waters around Cay Sal belong to the Bahamas, so you'll need to follow Bahamian fishing regulations. (until you get into International Waters). The area is also well-known by drug smugglers and serious fish/lobster poachers; when I went there I was armed, as was everyone who was on our boat. We also had a rifle and a shotgun at our disposal, just in case.
 
If one (or both) of the hulls were taking on water, why hasn't the cat sunk?
 
JerseyGirl said:
A neighbor said:

“I knew she was going on a trip with her boyfriend or husband, I'm not sure what they were, about two months and before she went the baby got sick, so she cancelled the trip.” The neighbor said he rarely saw her husband at the apartment.

“He apparently had a lot of different types of jobs. He was a plumber. I think he was from England or Ireland, I’m not sure, but he was never here . Then he was the captain of a boat, but he was always doing a million different things he told me."

The neighbor said he has not seen Isabella’s husband return to their apartment since Isabella has gone missing.

http://cbs12.com/news/local/neighbors-worried-about-delray-beach-woman-missing-at-sea
Click to expand...
Really hate to be suspicious, but ... :(:

- Were they already married before the trip got cancelled? Any records of a visit(s) to a doctor or a hospital to substantiate the claim the baby was ill?

- When was Isabella last seen alive? Did anyone see her get on the boat with her husband?

Isabella is stunningly beautiful, and the baby adorable. I hope she gets her mama back soon.
 
inmyhumbleopinion said:
Really hate to be suspicious, but ... :(:

- Were they already married before the trip got cancelled? Any records of a visit(s) to a doctor or a hospital to substantiate the claim the baby was ill?

- When was Isabella last seen alive? Did anyone see her get on the boat with her husband?

Isabella is stunningly beautiful, and the baby adorable. I hope she gets her mama back soon.
Click to expand...

I did a fair bit of sailing in my younger days, simply recreational and not far off shore. Still, we used safety practices that I would think any experienced sailor would consider. Considering the neighbor said the husband worked on a boat, I find it difficult to believe so many things were overlooked.
Sailing at night in open ocean, in or near shipping channels is inherently risky. There are shipping contains that bob below the surface you can’t see in the dark. We also never sailed alone - there was always a “buddy system” so if the person on deck had an issue there was someone there within shouting distance. You didn’t just go below deck and fall fast asleep.

We also wore safety lights – if you go overboard, with illumination there’s a much better chance of being spotted, without it, with wind and waves you are invisible. We’d also wear a harness that is tethered so we’d be connected physically to the boat’s jack lines that run the length of the boat so you can’t go over and drift away from it.

There’s a chance they hit a reef or a container, but his whole story of leaving his wife alone on deck in the middle of the night, in an area where most people sail armed due to pirates is unfathomable to me, having even a modest amount of experience. If he was a boat captain as claimed I can't imagine why things ended up as they did.
 
Lin58 said:
I did a fair bit of sailing in my younger days, simply recreational and not far off shore. Still, we used safety practices that I would think any experienced sailor would consider. Considering the neighbor said the husband worked on a boat, I find it difficult to believe so many things were overlooked.
Sailing at night in open ocean, in or near shipping channels is inherently risky. There are shipping contains that bob below the surface you can’t see in the dark. We also never sailed alone - there was always a “buddy system” so if the person on deck had an issue there was someone there within shouting distance. You didn’t just go below deck and fall fast asleep.

We also wore safety lights – if you go overboard, with illumination there’s a much better chance of being spotted, without it, with wind and waves you are invisible. We’d also wear a harness that is tethered so we’d be connected physically to the boat’s jack lines that run the length of the boat so you can’t go over and drift away from it.

There’s a chance they hit a reef or a container, but his whole story of leaving his wife alone on deck in the middle of the night, in an area where most people sail armed due to pirates is unfathomable to me, having even a modest amount of experience. If he was a boat captain as claimed I can't imagine why things ended up as they did.
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I agree with you 100%. And I'm also not convinced she really was wearing a life vest, he might be saying that to avoid suspicion.

I also find it telling what the neighbor had to say. Usually, in an unfortunate accident you hear things like "they were just starting their life together", "they were so happy with their new little girl", etc, etc.

The fact that the neighbor casts an even more suspicious cloud over the hubby / BF, especially in a time of crisis is very telling imo.

Even if you didn't know the guy, saying something like "he was really busy, so I didn't see him around much, but Isabella adored him". Neighbor must have known Isabella at least well enough to know the baby was sick.... it seems so odd that those words were chosen instead of the ones I suggested above.
 
Was he wet when the Coasties picked him up?
 
We lived on a sailboat for over a year and sailed throughout The Bahamas. There are so many red flags with this story that I don't even know where to start. First of all, catamarans are more difficult to 'sink' that a monohull. Some have been found years later, floating just below the surface. Sounds like an intentional breach of the hull. Many other issues, but that's one of them.
 
On Thursday night the Coast Guard suspended the search for Isabella Hellmann

Friends and family said they are overwhelmed.

Hellmann's friends and family said what a strong swimmer and vibrant personality Hellmann had.

They don't understand how she could have just disappeared from her boat.
And If she was wearing a life vest-- as her husband says she was when he last saw her, why wasn't she located and saved?

http://cbs12.com/news/local/friends-react-to-search-being-called-off-for-isabella-hellmann
 
JerseyGirl said:
Isabella is from Colombia. She married her husband Lewis Bennett a few months ago in Atlanta.

While the Coast Guard searches for Isabella, family members say her husband Lewis Bennett arrived at the home of her relatives in Boca Raton Monday evening.

Bennett told CBS12 he does not wish to comment. The baby girl is in the care of family members.

http://cbs12.com/news/local/neighbors-shocked-hearing-news-of-missing-delray-beach-mother
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Doesn't wish to comment. Too grief stricken, probably.
 
JerseyGirl said:
U.S. Coast Guard crews continued to search Tuesday. In 48 hours, the agency said, it’s searched an area of more than 3,400 square miles.

She was last seen Sunday night when the boat left Cuba.

Bennett told authorities he awoke at 1:30 a.m. Monday after the boat struck an object about 30 miles west of Cay Sal, the westernmost island in the Bahamas.

He said he came topside to find Hellman gone.

After Bennett transmitted a call for help, the Coast Guard found him in a raft about 1,000 yards from the catamaran, which was partially submerged.

The catamaran is upside down, floating in about 4,800 feet of water in an area that’s about 70 miles southeast of Key West and about 100 miles east-northeast of Havana. Divers have not yet gone inside it, which would be a dangerous proposition, but did bang on the hull and feel confident no one is alive in it.

It’s not in a shipping lane but noted the ocean has all sort of debris that a moving boat could strike without warning, especially in the dark.

The Coast Guard has marked the location of the boat and broadcast a “navigation hazard” warning. It ultimately will be up to the owner to remove it.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/l...gger-area-than-county/GKNsp1yIIdu2O3fVL929YO/
Click to expand...

The catamaran didn't sink.
 
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