Arrested Man Brian Hooker Denies Wrongdoing, Says His Lawyer

Brian Hooker, the 59-year-old Michigan man arrested Wednesday by the Royal Bahamas Police Force in connection with his wife's disappearance, denied any involvement in her fate through his attorney Thursday, even as investigators and Lynette Hooker's family raised urgent questions about his account of events.

Bahamas-based attorney Terrel A. Butler confirmed Hooker was taken into custody on Wednesday in connection with the disappearance of his wife, Lynette Hooker. Brian Hooker "categorically and unequivocally denies any wrongdoing" in his wife's disappearance, Butler said in a statement. "I maintain the position stated by my client: he categorically denies the allegations made against him," Butler added, noting she had advised Hooker to refrain from further public comments "to ensure the integrity of the legal process."

The couple departed Hope Town on the Abaco Islands for Elbow Cay around 7:30 p.m. on Saturday. Brian Hooker told authorities that bad weather caused Lynette Hooker to fall overboard from their dinghy as they made their way back to their yacht, named "Soulmate." Hooker told police his wife fell from an 8-foot hard-bottom dinghy near Elbow Cay. She was carrying the ignition keys when she went overboard, forcing him to paddle back toward shore. He arrived at the Marsh Harbor Boat Yard at 4 a.m. Sunday. Lynette Hooker, 55, was reported missing shortly after.

The U.S. Coast Guard opened a criminal probe into the incident. The Coast Guard interviewed Lynette's daughter, Karli Aylesworth, for two hours on Wednesday. No charges against Brian Hooker had been announced as of Thursday morning.

Aylesworth has been publicly skeptical of her stepfather's account. She told Fox & Friends that something "just doesn't add up" about her mother's disappearance. Butler's statement directly addressed those doubts: "Mr. Hooker categorically and unequivocally denies any wrongdoing and in particular the allegations recently made by Karli Aylesworth. He has been cooperating with the relevant authorities as part of an ongoing investigation," the statement said.

Lynette Hooker's mother, Darlene Hamlett, said: "We have many unanswered questions. Our family is still in shock. We are still holding on for a positive outcome to this tragedy."

Hamlett, struggling to reach investigators, was racing to obtain an emergency passport to fly to the Bahamas. Aylesworth hired an attorney, and both women called for a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident.

Aylesworth described the couple's relationship as volatile, saying they have "a history of not getting along, especially when they drink." The couple, originally from Michigan, had been sailing for more than a decade, progressing from a small two-person sailboat to a larger vessel they purchased in Texas before sailing around the Gulf.

The search for Lynette Hooker, who has not been found, continued Thursday in waters near Elbow Cay in the Abaco Islands.