Ralph Hendry and Kathy Brandel, who have been married for 27 years, participated in a recent sailing club rally and were spending the winter in the Caribbean. Credit…via The Salty Dawg Sailing Association

Two liveaboard cruisers, Ralph Hendry, 66, and Kathy Brandel, 71, are missing and feared dead after their 48′ catamaran Simplicity was apparently stolen during a prison escape from Grenada by three men on February 19th.  On February 21, their boat was found at anchor in neighboring St Vincent and the Grenadines with no one aboard, but showing signs of foul play.

On Monday, the Royal Grenada Police Force confirmed that three prison escapees in Grenada made their getaway after they hijacked the catamaran with Mr Hendry and Ms Brandel aboard.

“Information suggests that, while traveling between Grenada and St. Vincent, they disposed of the occupants,” Commissioner Don McKenzie of the Royal Grenada Police Force said at a news conference on Monday. 

The police would not say explicitly that they believed Mr Hendry and Ms Brandel were dead but that they were still considered missing. “We have nothing conclusive to say that the individuals are dead,” he said.

“What I can say to the family is my condolences,” adding that he was “still hoping for as what I consider a positive outcome which is, we still have the hope that a worst-case scenario will not be a reality.”

The BBC reports that the Salty Dawg Sailing Association – of which the missing couple was a member – characterized Mr Hendry and Ms Brandel as “veteran cruisers” who were spending the winter months cruising the eastern Caribbean. They sailed to the region from the state of Virginia last year.

The association was first alerted of the incident on February 21 that Simplicity had been found abandoned near St Vincent. The cruising skipper who found the vessel “found evidence of apparent violence”.

“This is a very upsetting event and details are still unconfirmed by the authorities, but this does appear to be a tragic event,” association president Bob Osborn said in a statement. “In all my years of cruising the Caribbean, I have never heard of anything like this.”

A GoFundMe page set up for the family noted that Ms Brandel had “recently” become a grandmother.

“Kathy and Ralph, experienced adventurers, spent their retirement sailing aboard Simplicity, spending summers in New England and embracing the warmth of Caribbean winters,” the page said.

The three escaped prisoners, aged 19, 25, and 30, had been in custody waiting to see a judge after being arrested on robbery with violence charges several months ago. The eldest detainee was also charged with one count of rape, three counts of attempted rape, and two counts of indecent assault and causing harm, the Associated Press reported.

During the news conference on Monday, Mr McKenzie said that Grenadian authorities were working to determine whether the escape resulted from a “system failure” or “slip up”.

Couple missing after yacht found in Caribbean

Thanks to Roger Eastman and Alaric Bond for contributing to this post.