Kathy Brandel and Ralph Hendry; The couple’s yacht.Photo:Jessica Mause/GoFundMe; Courtesy of Robert Osborn
Jessica Mause/GoFundMe; Courtesy of Robert Osborn
After news thatKathy Brandel and Ralph Hendry are presumed deadmore than a week after their disappearance in Grenada, their sons and close friends are speaking out.
Brandel’s son, Nick Buro, and Hendry’s son, Bryan Hendry, joined theTodayshow on Tuesday morning and shared the many emotions that they’re experiencing amid the continued search for their parents, whowere last seen on Feb. 18, while their yacht was found 80 miles away.
“Shock, despair, fear, sadness, hope, love — all of those emotions are going through our head at the same time,” Buro said of how he and his stepbrother are feeling.
“An altercation of violence took place on the boat,” Buro continued, based on “clear evidence seen from blood on the boat as well as their possessions being thrown around and strewn around all over.”
A close friend of the couple and their emergency contact, Rob Maher, also spoke out, tellingToday, “This seems like a bad Hollywood movie.”
“It’s hard to think of their last moments with the idea that they might’ve been thrown overboard alive, bloodied, it’s difficult to conceive for a friend."
Nick Buro (left) and Bryan Hendry join ‘Today’.Today Show/X
Today Show/X
Brandel, a retired real estate agent who would have turned 71 Wednesday, and Hendry, a 66-year-old financial advisor who worked from their yacht, were last heard from on Feb. 18, according to their sons.
“It means so much to us that so many people cared for Ralph and Kathy as friends and fellow cruisers that they are willing to stop and help in whatever way possible,” the statement continued. “Thanks to all this input from this community we are able to develop a timeline of events.”
The stepbrothers also thanked authorities for their “quick actions” in securing the couple’s boat, Simplicity, “and their brave, swift response that led to the apprehension of three dangerous fugitives.”
Ron Mitchell, Trevor Robertson, Atiba Stanislaus.Royal Grenada Police Force
Royal Grenada Police Force
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In the press release, police identified the Grenadian prisoners as Trevon Robertson, 19, Abita Stanislaus, 25, and sailor Ron Mitchell, 30, who were re-apprehended on Feb. 21.
A source close to the investigation told PEOPLE that two of the men confessed to killing the couple, while the third was hospitalized for a gunshot wound to the leg.
source: people.com
