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Cops give up sea search for Bison Dele's body
PAPEETE, Tahiti -- Investigators have stopped searching for the bodies of former Denver Nuggets player Bison Dele and two companions who disappeared at sea, and the case now is focused on interviewing witnesses and searching Dele's sailboat.
FBI agents tracked down someone who received a satellite phone call from aboard Dele's luxury catamaran, and hope the person can reveal clues about the disappearance of Dele, his girlfriend and a skipper.
The trio was last seen July 8 near the tiny island of Maiao, west of Tahiti. Investigators in the French territory believe they were killed by Dele's older brother, Miles Dabord.
FBI agents have been trying to question the recipient of the satellite phone call, who has so far refused to cooperate, Tahiti-based investigating judge Jean-Bernard Taliercio said. Authorities believe the call was made just after the struggle.
Whatever the person reveals, the call's timing makes him or her an important witness, Taliercio said. He declined to identify the person, who lives in the South Pacific.
Authorities have little hope of hearing Dabord's version of events firsthand. He has been in a coma since being found on the California-Mexico border on Sept. 14. He is at a San Diego-area hospital.
Patricia Phillips, the mother of the two brothers, has told newspapers that Dabord overdosed on insulin and failing to take his asthma medicine.
Investigators believe the bodies likely were tossed off Dele's catamaran in the deep, shark-infested waters of the South Pacific. The ocean floor is nearly 10,000 feet deep where they disappeared.
Prosecutor Michel Marotte added investigators suspect the bodies could have been weighted down before being thrown overboard.
``If by some chance, a few bones or fragments wash up, we'll know what it is,'' Marotte said. ``Now, it's purely up to chance.''
Investigators will continue searching the boat, which is still docked in the Tahitian port where Dabord left it in mid-July.
Dele, who used to be known as Brian Williams, had planned to sail from New Zealand to Hawaii aboard his luxury catamaran, the Hakuna Matata. Dele, his girlfriend Serena Karlan and skipper Bertrand Saldo disappeared while sailing near the tiny island of Maiao, west of Tahiti.
Karlan's mother and stepfather live in Longmont, Colo.
Phillips said Dabord will be unhooked from the respirator that is keeping him alive, but she would not say when, the Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday. "I don't want a media circus around us on the day my son's life ends,'' she said.
She said a joint memorial service was being planned for both her sons, but she did not specify the date of the service.
Dabord, who changed his name from Kevin Williams, has not been charged with anything related to the disappearances. He was arrested on suspicion of impersonating his younger brother, who played for several NBA teams.
With the prospects for Dabord's recovery growing dim, second-hand accounts have become key. Dabord's ex-girlfriend, Erica Weise, joined him on the Polynesian island of Moorea after the disappearances. Back at home, she informed U.S. authorities Dabord told her of an onboard struggle that left his companions dead.
Weise was quoted as telling Les Nouvelles de Tahiti newspaper that Dele's girlfriend was killed when she tried to intervene during a fight between the two brothers. She died after falling and hitting her head, Weise was quoted as saying.
She reportedly said Dabord told her that Dele killed the skipper because he wanted to radio authorities about the death onboard. The brothers' fighting then escalated, and Dabord shot Dele to defend himself, she was quoted as saying. Authorities in French Polynesia have not confirmed the account.
PAPEETE, Tahiti -- Investigators have stopped searching for the bodies of former Denver Nuggets player Bison Dele and two companions who disappeared at sea, and the case now is focused on interviewing witnesses and searching Dele's sailboat.
FBI agents tracked down someone who received a satellite phone call from aboard Dele's luxury catamaran, and hope the person can reveal clues about the disappearance of Dele, his girlfriend and a skipper.
The trio was last seen July 8 near the tiny island of Maiao, west of Tahiti. Investigators in the French territory believe they were killed by Dele's older brother, Miles Dabord.
FBI agents have been trying to question the recipient of the satellite phone call, who has so far refused to cooperate, Tahiti-based investigating judge Jean-Bernard Taliercio said. Authorities believe the call was made just after the struggle.
Whatever the person reveals, the call's timing makes him or her an important witness, Taliercio said. He declined to identify the person, who lives in the South Pacific.
Authorities have little hope of hearing Dabord's version of events firsthand. He has been in a coma since being found on the California-Mexico border on Sept. 14. He is at a San Diego-area hospital.
Patricia Phillips, the mother of the two brothers, has told newspapers that Dabord overdosed on insulin and failing to take his asthma medicine.
Investigators believe the bodies likely were tossed off Dele's catamaran in the deep, shark-infested waters of the South Pacific. The ocean floor is nearly 10,000 feet deep where they disappeared.
Prosecutor Michel Marotte added investigators suspect the bodies could have been weighted down before being thrown overboard.
``If by some chance, a few bones or fragments wash up, we'll know what it is,'' Marotte said. ``Now, it's purely up to chance.''
Investigators will continue searching the boat, which is still docked in the Tahitian port where Dabord left it in mid-July.
Dele, who used to be known as Brian Williams, had planned to sail from New Zealand to Hawaii aboard his luxury catamaran, the Hakuna Matata. Dele, his girlfriend Serena Karlan and skipper Bertrand Saldo disappeared while sailing near the tiny island of Maiao, west of Tahiti.
Karlan's mother and stepfather live in Longmont, Colo.
Phillips said Dabord will be unhooked from the respirator that is keeping him alive, but she would not say when, the Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday. "I don't want a media circus around us on the day my son's life ends,'' she said.
She said a joint memorial service was being planned for both her sons, but she did not specify the date of the service.
Dabord, who changed his name from Kevin Williams, has not been charged with anything related to the disappearances. He was arrested on suspicion of impersonating his younger brother, who played for several NBA teams.
With the prospects for Dabord's recovery growing dim, second-hand accounts have become key. Dabord's ex-girlfriend, Erica Weise, joined him on the Polynesian island of Moorea after the disappearances. Back at home, she informed U.S. authorities Dabord told her of an onboard struggle that left his companions dead.
Weise was quoted as telling Les Nouvelles de Tahiti newspaper that Dele's girlfriend was killed when she tried to intervene during a fight between the two brothers. She died after falling and hitting her head, Weise was quoted as saying.
She reportedly said Dabord told her that Dele killed the skipper because he wanted to radio authorities about the death onboard. The brothers' fighting then escalated, and Dabord shot Dele to defend himself, she was quoted as saying. Authorities in French Polynesia have not confirmed the account.