Brian Hooker Reportedly Told Friend Heavy Winds Caused His Wife’s Disappearance

Brian Hooker — the man arrested in the disappearance of his wife Lynette Hooker — says he got separated from her due to heavy winds after she fell overboard Saturday night, according to messages reviewed by CBS News.

Two days after Lynette vanished at sea in the Bahamas, Brian was contacted via text by a buddy, Daniel Danforth, who checked in with him Monday after seeing all the headlines, CBS reports.

Daniel cited an ABC News report about Lynette falling off the boat — prompting Brian to reply, “The wind blew me away from her and she swam towards the sailboat and we lost sight of each other pretty quickly as it was just about sundown.”

Brian went on … “I drifted and tried to paddle with one oar for the next 7 hours until I washed up behind the shore of the next Island over and was able to get some help finally.”

Brian gave a similar account to police, claiming Lynette fell off their dinghy and got swept away by strong currents while they were sailing from Hope Town to Elbow Cay in the Bahamas. Through his attorney, Brian has denied any wrongdoing.

However, the Royal Bahamas Police Force arrested Brian on Wednesday after questioning him for over 3 hours, according to his lawyer, Terrel Butler.