VA Couple 'Disposed Of' After Yacht Hijacking In Caribbean: Police

FALLS CHURCH, VA — An American couple whose catamaran was recently hijacked by three prisoner escapees were "disposed of" in the Caribbean waters, Royal Grenada Police Force Commissioner Don McKenzie said at a Monday news conference.

McKenzie said he is limited on releasing details about the hijacking; however, the Associated Press reported U.S. citizens Ralph Hendry and Kathy Brandel "were killed and thrown into the Caribbean Sea."

ABC News reported Hendry and Brandel were from Falls Church.

The three suspects disposed of Hendry and Brandel as the duo's yacht, Simplicity, was located somewhere between Grenada and St. Vincent, McKenzie said.

Hendry and Brandel's yacht was docked in St. George when it was hijacked, and authorities said the couple "may have been killed in the process."

Simplicity was found three days later, anchored and abandoned off a beach on the south coast of the Caribbean island of St. Vincent, according to a statement released by the Salty Dawg Sailing Association, an organization to which Hendry and Brandel belonged.

A GoFundMe started for the husband and wife noted a "senseless act of violence ... tragically claimed (their) lives."

"Kathy and Ralph were seasoned sailors who lived on their beloved catamaran, Simplicity. Their lives ended in unimaginable tragedy on Sunday, February 19th, off the shores of Grand Anse Beach, Grenada," read the GoFundMe, organized by Jessica Mause. The fundraiser has collected more than $50,000 as of early Monday afternoon.

The suspects have been identified as Ron Mitchell, 30, Trevon Robertson, 19, and Abita Stanislaus, 25, McKenzie said. They were all captured Wednesday in St. Vincent.

They had been in a jail's holding cell at the South St. Georgia Police Station since Feb. 18, when they escaped custody, authorities said.

They were being held on suspicion of robbery with violence, authorities said. Mitchell was additionally previously charged on suspicion of rape, indecent assault and causing harm.

Nick Buro, Brandel's son, told CNN that Simplicity was ransacked due to "an altercation of some type that took place on the boat."

“We are doing our best to try and get answers to find out what is next in terms of hopefully finding them safely recovered somewhere on the islands,” Buro told CNN Sunday. “But of course from the evidence that’s been found on the boat, we are concerned that there might be a possibility that they aren’t with us.”

Read more on Buro's interview via CNN.