After a theft at a kebab shop, the British sailor, James Nunan, was last seen before his disappearance over a month ago. James, 34, set sail near Gran Canaria, Spain, with plans to circumnavigate the globe. Authorities suspect he may have encountered a mishap at sea following a night spent ashore. His final movements were retraced with the help of a theft incident.
Concerned about James’ whereabouts, his distressed family has flown to Gran Canaria to aid in the search efforts. According to reports, James, who held an Irish passport despite being born in the UK, was noted at a police station on August 19 reporting his passport missing. The day before, he docked his yacht in Las Isletas, Las Palmas, and was later seen at Paddy’s Anchor, an Irish pub.
James, also known as Jemsie among acquaintances, visited a kebab shop after leaving the pub, where investigators believe his backpack was stolen. He even live-streamed himself on Facebook while passing through a crowd at a beach near Las Palmas city center. His intended route was from Gran Canaria to Lanzarote and then onwards to Brazil across the vast Atlantic Ocean.
Speaking with the BBC, James’ half-sister, Nikita Goddard, expressed the family’s emotional strain in searching for him, hoping for his safe return. Despite finding his boat approximately 100 miles away from Las Palmas, the search for James continues. Authorities are concentrating on the hypothesis that James may have met with an accident at sea, potentially falling from the yacht’s mast due to missing safety equipment.
A source from the Civil Guard suggested that adverse weather conditions may have caused James to attempt climbing the mast, resulting in a possible accident. However, investigations are ongoing, and no definitive conclusions have been reached.