Monday, December 29, 2008
WINTER HAVEN, Fla. -- Search crews ended their efforts Monday afternoon to find a Central Florida woman who disappeared from a cruise ship at sea.
An HU-25 Falcon jet crew from Coast Guard Air Station Miami, C-130 fixed-wing aircraft crews from Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater, Fla., and Mexican navy patrol boat and helicopter crews searched more than 4,200 square miles for Seitz. The search was called off around 3:00pm Monday.
AT THE SCENE: Images Of Woman, Cruise Ship
Note: in the above image link, the rail looks like it might be about 4' high, plus, there is a chair pulled over to the railing. Would she have jumped, being a newlywed?
"The Coast Guard and Mexican navy conducted an exhaustive search for Jennifer Seitz, but have not located her," said Capt. Dean Lee, Seventh Coast Guard District chief of staff. "Our thoughts are with Jennifer Seitz's family and friends during this difficult time."
Investigators said surveillance video shows a woman falling overboard from the Norwegian Pearl on Christmas night. The video has not been released. Jennifer Seitz, 36, a former Florida Today reporter who lived in Winter Haven, was reported missing the next morning and now the FBI is questioning passengers to try to figure out what happened.
What was supposed to be a relaxing holiday cruise for a newlywed couple turned into a tragic tale shrouded in mystery. Their cabin on the ship is now a crime scene with investigators scouring for forensic clues.
"It's an on-going FBI investigation. We're in charge of crimes on the high seas of American citizens and that is what we are doing right now. We're looking for evidence," said Capt. Dean Lee, Miami Coast Guard.
It was early Friday morning when Seitz's husband reported her missing, no where to be found aboard the Norwegian Pearl cruise ship steaming towards the Caribbean. He reported it eight hours after Jennifer went overboard, according to one of the ship's more than 1,000 surveillance cameras.
"They eventually discovered on some recorded tape the image of a woman going overboard wearing a white bathrobe sometime around 8:00 the previous evening. That would have been on Christmas night," Capt. Lee said.
It's very disturbing news to fellow passengers who disembarked from the seven-day cruise Sunday. Witnesses had stories to share, including new details. The Seitzs were vacationing with Jennifer's mother and they took part in a cruise activity in front of a crowd playing the newlywed game.
"They seemed like they're pretty fun and stuff, pretty wild if anything," passenger Austin Stovall said.
In Winter Haven, neighbors of Jennifer Seitz said they were shocked and saddened to hear she had disappeared from the cruise ship.
"That's really sad. I feel awful, I would feel awful if it happened to my daughter," said neighbor Kathy Hoyt.
A close friend of the family said Seitz and her husband lived with her mother in a home on Knotty Pine Drive. Seitz's mother rushed to Miami as soon as she was notified.
Authorities said they have interviewed the ship's crew and Jennifer's family members and they are all cooperating with police. They said Jennifer's husband is not a suspect at this time.
It was the sixth time this year crews have searched for someone who went overboard from a cruise ship.
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