1994 SHEARER, MADOTT, & MUNRO 11/1994, Gulf of Mexico 25YO

[Cheryl]

Unexplained Disappearances

by Peter Worthington, Toronto Sun, Sept. 1995

Copyright 1994 and 1995, The Toronto Sun, a division of Sun Media Corporation

Until I read a pocket book (Vanished in the Gulf) written and published by the Toronto Sun’s all-purpose reporter, Joe Warmington, I’d paid only cursory attention to the disappearance of those four young Toronto area men on a scuba-diving holiday in the Gulf of Mexico last November.

While the media stressed the “mystery” even (especially?) after one of the young men was rescued 36 hours later, I tended to view it as simply another tragedy and one of those things that happen when people go adventuring on salt water.

After reading the book - a vaguely unsatisfying, provocative account of Joe’s coverage of the case - I find unanswered questions more puzzling than the disappearance.

Warmington is one of those reporters whose various enthusiasms drive editors nuts, but who is indispensable when a big story breaks. He’s a self-starter - surprisingly rare in newsrooms - and wrote and published a previous book on country singer Billy Ray Cyrus. In my mind’s eye I see Warmington hustling that book from the back of a station wagon down in Nashville.

Warmington was a natural choice to cover the disappearance in the Gulf of Omar Shearer, David Madott and Kent Munro, all friends, all bright, all capable, all 25. Their guide and pal was Jeff Wandich, whose family owned property in Mississauga and Florida. He arranged the outing on a 25-foot boat powered by two 225-hp outboard motors.

On the afternoon of last Nov. 4, while diving on a sunken ship 60 miles into the Gulf of Mexico southwest of Ft. Myers, their boat sank. The three friends, all wearing wet suits and buoyancy devices, disappeared, while Wandich managed to swim to a light tower four miles away and was rescued 36 hours later.

The largest search in Gulf history turned up only a camera bag floating in the sea. The sunken boat was recovered intact. A shaken Wandich told puzzled Coast Guard and FBI what happened. No one suggests foul play, just mystery. From Warmington’s book, unanswered questions are intriguing:

- Why did the boat sink? It was undamaged, the seacocks were closed, and although two of them were aboard when it was being swamped, batteries powering the bilge pumps were not turned on. Why not? Using bilge pumps is automatic.

- Although all were diving at the same time, contrary to safety rules, why didn’t the two who had returned to the boat and found it sinking, use the radio for a “Mayday” call? This was a much travelled area and rescue would have been assured.



Abandoned ship

- When it was obvious the boat was sinking, why wouldn’t the pair on board (Omar and Kent), still in wet suits and with buoyancy devices, put on flippers when they abandoned ship? Their flippers were subsequently found in the sunken boat. One would think using flippers would have been automatic.

- When the four were together in the water watching the boat sink, why would one (David) supposedly tie himself to it, which is what Wandich says happened? (Wandich cut him loose). Why wouldn’t the four use the rope to link themselves together?

- When David apparently dived to the sinking boat, why would he bring up a plastic bag of fish bait and scatter it over the water, thus risk attracting sharks? Why would he not have “rescued” flippers for his friends, or the emergency flares?

- Why would the four choose to fish that morning and dive in late afternoon? Apparently, it’s standard to dive early when the light is best. Going out all day, why wouldn’t they have taken sandwiches? Who goes out for a day without snacks?

- When they got separated and Wandich (wearing flippers) made it to the light tower, how come he didn’t climb to the top to be seen? And how come rescue helicopters failed to see him that first night when they circled it with spotlights? Surely, that’s the first place the Coast Guard would have checked?

- All were wearing unsinkable flotation devices, so even if they drowned they’d still float. The weather was reasonable, and if sharks had attacked (an occurrence rarer than is popularly believed), there’d be wreckage. Yet nothing.

As I say, there are no answers. Wandich, the only survivor, has been interrogated and there is no reason to question his story - he even underwent lie detector tests.

Warmington’s book doesn’t speculate, but families of the missing men have offered a $75,000 reward for information leading to their safe return - $25,000 each ($5,000 if dead). Anyway, it’s a provocative mystery and a quick read for $5.99 at Coles or SmithBooks, or from Warmington (plus $2 mailing) at the Sun, 416-947-2392.

http://www.vanished.org/html/unexplained_disappearances.html

[PorchlightCanada]

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/s/shearer_omar.html

Omar Kahlil Shearer


Left and Center: Shearer, circa 1994;
Right: Age-progression at an unknown age


Vital Statistics at Time of Disappearance

Missing Since: November 4, 1994 from Marco Island, Florida
Classification: Endangered Missing
Date Of Birth: May 20, 1969
Age: 25 years old
Height and Weight: 5'5, 160 pounds
Distinguishing Characteristics: African-American male. Black hair, brown eyes. Shearer had a moustache at the time of his 1994 disappearance. He was born in Jamaica.


Details of Disappearance

Shearer was visiting Marco Island, Florida from his hometown of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada in November 1994. He arrived with his friends Kent Munro and David Madott on November 3. The group planned to spend the weekend at their friend Jeffrey Wandich's family's condominium on the island. A photo of Wandich is posted below this case summary. Madott, Munro and Shearer planned to return to Ontario on November 7. Shearer was employed at Ottawa Civic Hospital in Ottawa, Ontario in 1994.
The four men departed from Marco River Marina in Wandich's pleasure boat, the Sea Esta, at approximately 8:00 a.m. on November 4. All four were licensed scuba divers and planned to spend the day fishing and diving at the wreck of the Baja California, which was located approximately 55 miles southwest of Marco Island in the Gulf Of Mexico. Wandich turned the Sea Esta back to the marina shortly after they departed when it appeared one of his outboard motors was overheating. He purchased two thermostats as emergency replacements and continued the trip.

Wandich stated that they stopped to catch bait at the wreck of Ben's Barge later in the morning. The wreck is approximately four miles in the Gulf from Marco Island. The group decided that weather conditions were good and travled on to the Baja California wreck that afternoon. They fished at the site for approximately one hour before Munro became queasy due to the increasing surf. The group decided to dive at the wreck and left the Sea Esta unattended during their 15 minutes underwater. When the men surfaced, Wandich stated that they saw approximately three feet of the boat's bow out of the water. The rest of the vessel had submerged during their dive at approximately 3:30 p.m. All the men wore wetsuits and fully inflated buoyancy compensators (BCs). They held on to the anchor rope together as the Sea Esta remained partially submerged until approximately 7:00 p.m.

According to Wandich, Shearer was the first to realize that the boat was sinking completely into the water and the rope was torn from the group's hands at that time. They began swimming together towards a light tower operated by the United States Department Of Defense. The tower was located approximately three miles east of the Baja California wreck. The seas swelled to six feet by that point in the evening. Wandich said that he was briefly overcome by fear as the men swam to the tower and he turned away from the group. Wandich stated that Shearer encouraged him to rejoin them and called out to him several times. Wandich said he replied that he was not going off on his own, but he could no longer see his three friends when he turned back. Wandich said he looked over the surf for signs of Madott, Munro and Shearer for a period of time before swimming to the tower by himself.

Wandich climbed the tower at approximately 11:00 p.m. on November 4 and remained at the location until the morning of November 6, when he was rescued by the United States Coast Guard. He learned that his three friends had not been located at that time. A search had been deployed for the four men during the evening hours of November 4, when Wandich's loved ones realized the Sea Esta had not returned to port.

There has been no sign of Madott, Munro or Shearer since November 4. Many rumors have surfaced throughout the proceeding years regarding their cases. The theories have ranged from voluntary disappearances to a drug deal gone awry. None of the rumors have been proven to be accurate. A group of divers searched the wreck of the Sea Esta shortly after it went down and discovered the boat may not have been equipped to handle the weight of its load on November 4, thereby causing the vessel to sink. The Federal Bureau Of Investigation (FBI) was involved in the case of the missing men for a short time in 1994, but ruled the incident was an accident and that Madott, Munro and Shearer were most likely lost at sea as a result. Their families continue to search for answers as to the men's whereabouts.



Above: Wandich, circa 1994


Investigating Agency
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:
Vanished
info@vanished.org



Source Information
Vanished
Million Dollar Mysteries



Charley Project Home




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[PorchlightCanada]

http://z10.invisionfree.com/usedtobedoe/in...opic=9937&st=0&
http://z10.invisionfree.com/usedtobedoe/in...opic=9935&st=0&
http://z10.invisionfree.com/usedtobedoe/in...opic=9934&st=0&

[PorchlightCanada]

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/m/munro_kent.html

Kent Lionel Munro


Left and Center: Munro, circa 1994;
Right: Age-progression at an unknown age


Vital Statistics at Time of Disappearance

Missing Since: November 4, 1994 from Marco Island, Florida
Classification: Endangered Missing
Date Of Birth: January 12, 1969
Age: 25 years old
Height and Weight: 6'2, 210 pounds
Distinguishing Characteristics: Caucasian male. Blond hair, blue eyes.


Details of Disappearance

Munro was visiting Marco Island, Florida from his hometown of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada in November 1994. He arrived with his friends David Madott and Omar Shearer on November 3. The group planned to spend the weekend at their friend Jeffrey Wandich's family's condominium on the island. A photo of Wandich is posted below this case summary. Madott, Munro and Shearer planned to return to Ontario on November 7. Munro was married and employed at Tour and Anderssen in Ontario in 1994.
The four men departed from Marco River Marina in Wandich's pleasure boat, the Sea Esta, at approximately 8:00 a.m. on November 4. All four were licensed scuba divers and planned to spend the day fishing and diving at the wreck of the Baja California, which was located approximately 55 miles southwest of Marco Island in the Gulf Of Mexico. Wandich turned the Sea Esta back to the marina shortly after they departed when it appeared one of his outboard motors was overheating. He purchased two thermostats as emergency replacements and continued the trip.

Wandich stated that they stopped to catch bait at the wreck of Ben's Barge later in the morning. The wreck is approximately four miles in the Gulf from Marco Island. The group decided that weather conditions were good and travled on to the Baja California wreck that afternoon. They fished at the site for approximately one hour before Munro became queasy due to the increasing surf. The group decided to dive at the wreck and left the Sea Esta unattended during their 15 minutes underwater. When the men surfaced, Wandich stated that they saw approximately three feet of the boat's bow out of the water. The rest of the vessel had submerged during their dive at approximately 3:30 p.m. All the men wore wetsuits and fully inflated buoyancy compensators (BCs). They held on to the anchor rope together as the Sea Esta remained partially submerged until approximately 7:00 p.m.

According to Wandich, Shearer was the first to realize that the boat was sinking completely into the water and the rope was torn from the group's hands at that time. They began swimming together towards a light tower operated by the United States Department Of Defense. The tower was located approximately three miles east of the Baja California wreck. The seas swelled to six feet by that point in the evening. Wandich said that he was briefly overcome by fear as the men swam to the tower and he turned away from the group. Wandich stated that Shearer encouraged him to rejoin them and called out to him several times. Wandich said he replied that he was not going off on his own, but he could no longer see his three friends when he turned back. Wandich said he looked over the surf for signs of Madott, Munro and Shearer for a period of time before swimming to the tower by himself.

Wandich climbed the tower at approximately 11:00 p.m. on November 4 and remained at the location until the morning of November 6, when he was rescued by the United States Coast Guard. He learned that his three friends had not been located at that time. A search had been deployed for the four men during the evening hours of November 4, when Wandich's loved ones realized the Sea Esta had not returned to port.

There has been no sign of Madott, Munro or Shearer since November 4. Many rumors have surfaced throughout the proceeding years regarding their cases. The theories have ranged from voluntary disappearances to a drug deal gone awry. None of the rumors have been proven to be accurate. A group of divers searched the wreck of the Sea Esta shortly after it went down and discovered the boat may not have been equipped to handle the weight of its load on November 4, thereby causing the vessel to sink. The Federal Bureau Of Investigation (FBI) was involved in the case of the missing men for a short time in 1994, but ruled the incident was an accident and that Madott, Munro and Shearer were most likely lost at sea as a result. Their families continue to search for answers as to the men's whereabouts.



Above: Wandich, circa 1994


Investigating Agency
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:
Vanished
info@vanished.org



Source Information
Vanished
Million Dollar Mysteries



Charley Project Home




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[PorchlightCanada]

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/m/madott_david.html

David William Madott


Left and Center: Madott, circa 1994;
Right: Age-progression at an unknown age


Vital Statistics at Time of Disappearance

Missing Since: November 4, 1994 from Marco Island, Florida
Classification: Endangered Missing
Date Of Birth: January 19, 1969
Age: 25 years old
Height and Weight: 5'5, 160 pounds
Distinguishing Characteristics: Caucasian male. Dark brown hair, brown eyes.


Details of Disappearance

Madott was visiting Marco Island, Florida from his hometown of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada in November 1994. He arrived with his friends Kent Munro and Omar Shearer on November 3. The group planned to spend the weekend at their friend Jeffrey Wandich's family's condominium on the island. A photo of Wandich is posted below this case summary. Madott, Munro and Shearer planned to return to Ontario on November 7. Madott was employed at Magna International in Ontario in 1994.
The four men departed from Marco River Marina in Wandich's pleasure boat, the Sea Esta, at approximately 8:00 a.m. on November 4. All four were licensed scuba divers and planned to spend the day fishing and diving at the wreck of the Baja California, which was located approximately 55 miles southwest of Marco Island in the Gulf Of Mexico. Wandich turned the Sea Esta back to the marina shortly after they departed when it appeared one of his outboard motors was overheating. He purchased two thermostats as emergency replacements and continued the trip.

Wandich stated that they stopped to catch bait at the wreck of Ben's Barge later in the morning. The wreck is approximately four miles in the Gulf from Marco Island. The group decided that weather conditions were good and travled on to the Baja California wreck that afternoon. They fished at the site for approximately one hour before Munro became queasy due to the increasing surf. The group decided to dive at the wreck and left the Sea Esta unattended during their 15 minutes underwater. When the men surfaced, Wandich stated that they saw approximately three feet of the boat's bow out of the water. The rest of the vessel had submerged during their dive at approximately 3:30 p.m. All the men wore wetsuits and fully inflated buoyancy compensators (BCs). They held on to the anchor rope together as the Sea Esta remained partially submerged until approximately 7:00 p.m.

According to Wandich, Shearer was the first to realize that the boat was sinking completely into the water and the rope was torn from the group's hands at that time. They began swimming together towards a light tower operated by the United States Department Of Defense. The tower was located approximately three miles east of the Baja California wreck. The seas swelled to six feet by that point in the evening. Wandich said that he was briefly overcome by fear as the men swam to the tower and he turned away from the group. Wandich stated that Shearer encouraged him to rejoin them and called out to him several times. Wandich said he replied that he was not going off on his own, but he could no longer see his three friends when he turned back. Wandich said he looked over the surf for signs of Madott, Munro and Shearer for a period of time before swimming to the tower by himself.

Wandich climbed the tower at approximately 11:00 p.m. on November 4 and remained at the location until the morning of November 6, when he was rescued by the United States Coast Guard. He learned that his three friends had not been located at that time. A search had been deployed for the four men during the evening hours of November 4, when Wandich's loved ones realized the Sea Esta had not returned to port.

There has been no sign of Madott, Munro or Shearer since November 4. Many rumors have surfaced throughout the proceeding years regarding their cases. The theories have ranged from voluntary disappearances to a drug deal gone awry. None of the rumors have been proven to be accurate. A group of divers searched the wreck of the Sea Esta shortly after it went down and discovered the boat may not have been equipped to handle the weight of its load on November 4, thereby causing the vessel to sink. The Federal Bureau Of Investigation (FBI) was involved in the case of the missing men for a short time in 1994, but ruled the incident was an accident and that Madott, Munro and Shearer were most likely lost at sea as a result. Their families continue to search for answers as to the men's whereabouts.



Above: Wandich, circa 1994


Investigating Agency
If you have any information concerning this case, please contact:
Vanished
info@vanished.org



Source Information
Vanished
Million Dollar Mysteries



Charley Project Home




Attached Image (Click thumbnail to expand)