The U.S. Coast Guard announced Thursday evening that the search for a 33-year-old man who vanished after a Jan. 4 boat crash off Key Biscayne has ended.
Florida Fish and Wildlife reported divers found human remains belonging to the man identified as Spencer Sheridan, according to the Coast Guard.
“Our sincere condolences go out to the family and friends who lost their loved one,” Capt. Jo-Ann F. Burdian, the commander for the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Miami, said in a statement adding he had “truly hoped for a different outcome to this tragic situation.”
Divers found the boat’s lower unit on Wednesday with human remains belonging to the victim. It was near the Bear Cut Bridge, which connects Virginia Key with Key Biscayne.
Sheridan was in a boat with six other people when the crash happened. The group had hit bottom, so they were waiting for the charter boat’s captain to rescue them when they collided with the other boat.
Four were injured and Sheridan vanished at sea prompting a massive search involving three police departments, a state agency, and a federal agency.
FWC investigators found Sheridan and the other six people were in an unlicensed charter boat.
Quinton “Q” Dieterle, a Miami charter captain who is not related to the crash, said he witnessed the search. He said he is not surprised about the location.
“If you’re not familiar with the water, you are in deep trouble,” Dieterle said.
These are the risks of illegal charters and there are many in South Florida, Dieterle said.
“It’s hard for FWC to track down all these people,” Dieterle said.