PASCO COUNTY, Fla. — Port Richey Police said 57-year-old Andre Nolasco was last seen on Sunday morning, parking his truck across the street from Nick's Park. He launched his boat on the water.
On Monday morning, the U.S. Coast Guard said his girlfriend reported him missing after learning he didn't show up to work that morning. Port Richey then began a missing person investigation. The Coast Guard began searching the waters for Nolasco.
The Coast Guard created a search pattern by pinging Nolasco's phone for his last known location.
"His girlfriend reported him missing overdue because he didn't come home when he was supposed to," a spokesperson from the Coast Guard explained. "Our aircrew was out flying from his last known position. Found the boat."
The boat was located 8 miles west of the Hudson coast, north of where he launched from. No one was aboard the vessel.
Police removed Nolasco's boat trailer and used it to remove his boat from the water. The vessel is now in law enforcement custody.
"Some of his personal belongings were left on board," Santiago Gomez, a spokesman for the U.S. Coast Guard said. "But that's all we know, for now."
Port Richey police say finding an empty boat on the water isn't ideal in a search like this.
"It's not a good sign," Captain Michael Koch with Port Richey Police said, "We try and stay optimistic until there's no more reason to be optimistic."
Koch said in the department's talks with Nolasco's family, it wasn't unusual for him to go on the water by himself.
"As the indications arise, that's why we're starting to look at it as an accident," Koch said. "Obviously, the boat is found and he's not on. Something happened along the way. That falls under the guidelines of a potential vessel accident."
FWC, Pasco County Sheriff's Office, Port Richey Police, and the U.S. Coast Guard are working together to locate Nolasco.
Malique Rankin is a general assignment reporter with 10 Tampa Bay. You can email her story ideas at mrankin@10tampabay.com and follow her Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages.