THE Maritime Administration Department (MARAD) will be assisting with the search for two fishermen who disappeared at sea two weeks ago, ‘D’ Division Commander Leslie James has confirmed.Samuel Dabideen, the 43-year-old captain of the vessel and his 23-year-old son Arjohn Persaud are feared dead after their boat capsized at sea.

The men are from De Willem, West Coast Demerara. Their other two colleagues who made it to shore alive are Omadatt Basdeo, 32, called “Budha”, of West Coast Demerara and Mahesh Singh, 35, of Cummings Lodge, East Coast Demerara.

The men are blaming each other for their colleagues’ disappearance even as police intensify their investigations.

Commander James said he spoke to Basdeo and relatives of the missing men and an investigation is being carried out with the assistance of MARAD.

Reports are that the men left on the fishing expedition from the shores of Ruby, East Bank Essequibo on September 27, 2016.

Relatives were told that the captain and his son went missing on September 29, but they received the information from the owner of the vessel only on Tuesday last.

Relatives said they were told that once on the high sea, Singh was left on the larger vessel to overlook the three men, who ventured out in a smaller boat with a 1,000-pound seine to catch fish.

Singh eventually lost sight of the men and decided to search the waters with the vessel. He gave up the search two days after the men went missing, and decided to return to Guyana, where the owner of the vessel was contacted and told what had occurred.
Basdeo claimed that the boat he and the two others were in capsized and he swam three miles before reaching the shores of Trinidad, where he sought the assistance of the police and coast guard there.

“We would like all the neighbouring countries to assist in reporting any sighting to the relevant authorities in Guyana, so we can know exactly what is happening,” one relative said.