A major breakthrough in the case of the missing Sodwana Bay skipper John Matambu sees a man being taken into police custody for questioning in Maputo.
Matambu, affectionately referred to as the ‘Legend of Sodwana Bay’ by locals, went missing while on a charter with an unknown man on Saturday afternoon, 16 March.
Also read: Skipper presumed dead after vessel capsizes en route to Cape Town
The next day, the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) reported that his 21-foot Yeld Cat ski-boat, ‘Magnum Too’, was found ‘wrecked and extensively burnt out’ on a beach near the bay of Ponta Dobela in Mozambique.
Matambu’s nephew Mike Eilertsen, who is working closely with police, Interpol, local security companies and investigators, confirmed that Ferdie Visser was apprehended on Friday, 22 March and is now in police custody.
Visser was the original person of interest in the case.
The arrest comes after the police had circulated Visser’s photograph and name on Wednesday, alerting the public to be on the lookout.
Breaking News: Ferdie Visser Found in Police Custody**
22 March,16:40
Ferdie Visser, previously reported missing at sea, has been found in police custody in Maputo. This information is 100% confirmed. Attached are photos of him. pic.twitter.com/sAnlmzvFha
— SA REPORTS (@MARIUSBROODRYK) March 22, 2024
As yet, however, no word has been received on the whereabouts of Matambu.
Today marks a week since the Sodwana Bay skipper’s disappearance.
According to The Citizen, here’s what we know so far:
- The mystery man who chartered the boat, was out drinking at a local bar in Sodwana Bay with Matambu and other skippers on Friday night.
- He told them that he was terminally ill and his last wish was to go out on the sea with a boat.
- Matambu apparently then took the man to Island Rock Beach on the north coast of KwaZulu-Natal on Saturday.
- The ski-boat was expected to return to Sodwana Bay on Saturday afternoon, but the burnt-out remains were found along the Mozambique coastline on Sunday morning – with the two men missing.
- At 10pm on Saturday, a report was received by the NSRI saying the ski-boat may have been spotted as far north as Santa Maria close to the Mozambique coastline.
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Picture: NSRI