The daughter of a British sailor found dead on a life raft in the Caribbean today said she is stunned that a murder investigation has been launched.
John Garner, 53, was discovered on the raft with head and leg injuries just feet away from his burning yacht off the island of St Vincent.
Police said they are searching for a woman named Heidi Hukkelaas, believed to be Mr Garner’s Norweigan wife, who flew out to the holiday destination with him on January 19.
St Vincent police commissioner Michael Charles said: “We suspect foul play and will investigate the matter fully. Ms Hukkelaas is a person of interest and as with every murder investigation we have to look at everyone and everything and will leave no stones unturned.”
But Mr Garner’s daughter Elisabeth, 37, said her family believed his death to be a “tragic accident” and was unaware that it was being investigated as suspicious.
She added that her stepmother had left St Vincent two days before Mr Garner to return to Norway to look after her young children. She said: “She always leaves before him.
“This is a shock for everybody. We have not been told that this is being treated as suspicious. As far as we have been told, it is being treated as a tragic accident.”
Mr Garner was pronounced dead on arrival at the island’s Milton Cato Memorial Hospital.
Diver Kay Wilson, who has lived in St Vincent and the Grenadines for 12 years, was out on a dive trip when one of her crew members spotted smoke on the horizon at around 11.45am local time on Wednesday.
She said: “When we reached about a quarter of a mile off we saw a flashing light, which you would normally associate with a life jacket.
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“So we approached cautiously and we found somebody in the water with the life jacket around their neck approximately 150, 200ft away from the yacht.”
Ms Wilson said by then the flames had completely engulfed the vessel.
She added: “The fact that the captain of the vessel was in the water, he had launched his safety raft and the fact that we were able to find documents floating away from the vessel when we searched further, I would suggest that there had been an accident on board, the fire had overtaken the vessel and the captain had decided to leave.”
A sailing friend in Norway, where Mr Garner has lived for many years, said the divorced grandfather was ultra-fit and previously worked as a physical trainer for British special forces.
The yacht, called Asante, was found floating about 15 nautical miles off the beautiful coastal resort of Buccament, south-west of the island, which boasts several five-star hotels.
Police said Mr Garner and Ms Hukkelaas had recently been granted permission to extend their stay on the island until April 19.
Mr Garner had previously advertised sailing trips around the British Virgin Islands for between £5,500 and £9,000.
