WASHINGTON, Utah — The U.S. Navy has called off a search for a missing sailor from Utah who hadn't been seen for nearly a week, declaring him as Duty Status Whereabouts Unknown.
Information Systems Technician 2nd Class Gabriel D. Holt from Washington was officially reported unaccounted for on Saturday morning while the aircraft carrier he served on, the USS Nimitz, was conducting a port call in Guam.
However, Guam police said Holt was last seen at 11:57 p.m. Friday in the area between Hotel Nikko Guam and Gun Beach.
The Navy said it searched for Holt for 120 hours, covering more than 11,000 square nautical miles, using a helicopter combat squadron and aircraft from other ships, including the U.S. Coast Guard.
“Our deepest sympathies are with the family, friends, and shipmates of Petty Officer Holt,” said Capt. Doug Graber, commanding officer, USS Nimitz. “After carefully considering all pertinent factors and available information, we made the extremely difficult decision to suspend the search. This has been an extraordinarily challenging case, and the decision to suspend active efforts was not made lightly. We are sincerely grateful for the support and coordination from all units and partners who assisted in searching.”
Graber added that suspending the search was "heartbreaking."
