Authorities Call Off Search for Missing Uncle and Nephew Days After Fishing Boat Was Found Empty

Randall Spivey and Brandon Billmaier vanished on Friday, Dec. 19, authorities said

Randall Spivey (left) and Brandon Billmaier (right).Credit : 

Lee County Sheriff’s Office/Facebook

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Randall Spivey and his nephew, Brandon Billmaier, went missing on a fishing trip off the coast of Florida on Dec. 19
The Coast Guard said that searchers found the two men’s boat adrift the following day
The agency has since announced that it was suspending the search for Spivey and Billmaier, calling the move a “difficult decision”

Authorities have suspended the search for a missing uncle and nephew whose boat was found empty.

Days after Randall Spivey, 57, and his nephew Brandon Billmaier, 33, vanished, the U.S. Coast Guard said that the search for the men would be suspended “at sunset” on Monday, Dec. 22.

The Coast Guard said their officials and other partner agencies had searched for the men by air and sea, spanning about 6,700 square miles. The agency added that on-scene weather conditions during the operation consisted of approximately 10 mph winds and 3-foot seas.

“The Coast Guard diligently searched with our pilots, boat forces, cutter crews, and numerous partners,” said Lt. Amy Harrison, search and rescue mission coordinator for Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg, in a statement. “We saturated an incredibly large search area but, unfortunately, were unable to locate the two missing men.”

One day after the men disapperead, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office launched an urgent search on Saturday, Dec. 20, for the “endangered adults.”

“The two left early yesterday morning [Dec. 19] for a fishing trip on a 42FT Freeman boat from a residence on the 15000 block of Intracoastal Ct in Fort Myers,” the LCSO previously shared on Facebook.

The Coast Guard previously told PEOPLE that the agency was “working day and night with the goal of locating the missing boaters and returning them home to their loved ones.”

Billmaier’s wife, Deborah, announced a monetary reward on Instagram for anyone who found the two men.

“I am heartbroken posting this. My husband, Brandon, went out fishing yesterday with his uncle off the coast of Fort Myers,” she wrote in the post’s caption. “They left early in the morning on Friday, Dec. 19 and were meant to come back that afternoon.”

In its most recent news release, the Coast Guard said that its Air Station Clearwater helicopter crew found the boat adrift about 70 miles west of Fort Myers at approximately 12 a.m., on Saturday. The vessel was later brought back to Station Fort Myers Beach for additional investigation.

After careful review of the factors in the case, the agency said on Monday that it made the “difficult decision” to call off the search.

“There is no harder decision than suspending a search,” said Capt. Corrie Sergent, commanding officer of Coast Guard Sector St. Petersburg, in a statement. “I am incredibly grateful for the crews, partners, and volunteers across this community who executed this massive search with the utmost professionalism, persistence, and compassion. We offer our sincere condolences to the families and friends of Mr. Spivey and Mr. Billmaier during this extremely difficult time.”

Billmaier is an attorney with the Shiner Law Group, based in Florida, according to the company’s website. The firm issued a statement on Monday about Billmaier and Spivey, who is also a lawyer.

“On behalf of everyone at Shiner Law Group, we are deeply saddened by the disappearance of Brandon and his uncle, Randy,” said attorney David Shiner. “Brandon is a valued member of our firm and someone we care about tremendously, both as a colleague and as our friend. Brandon is an exceptional person and a great lawyer, and we are heartbroken.”

“Our hearts are with Brandon’s family and loved ones, and with everyone who is anxiously waiting for answers,” Shiner added.

‘There is no harder decision’: Coast Guard calls off search for missing Florida boaters

FORT MYERS, Fla. (WFLA) — On Monday evening, the U.S. Coast Guard officially suspended the search for two missing boaters who took off on a fishing trip from Fort Myers last week and never returned.

USCG said the search covered around 6,700 square miles, based on the boater’s last known position.

Randall Spivey, 57, and his nephew Brandon Billmaier, 33, left early Friday morning from a residential dock and were supposed to return home that afternoon.

When the men hadn’t come back by Friday night, Billmaier’s wife, Deborah Billmaier, contacted the U.S. Coast Guard, she wrote on Facebook.

A few hours later, their 42-foot boat was discovered, still in gear, roughly 70 miles offshore, but the men were nowhere to be found.

By Saturday morning, an extensive search had been launched, and local boaters had begun volunteering to join the efforts. So many offered to help that USCG asked civilian searchers to coordinate with them so they wouldn’t interfere with the official Search and Rescue crews. On Sunday, Deborah Billmaier wrote on Facebook that USCG informed her that the vessel’s Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) was still onboard, meaning Spivey and Billmaier would not be able to signal their position to rescuers.