23-Year-Old Coast Guard Member Vanished During Drug Patrol, and Authorities Haven't Been Able to Find Him

Bryan K. Lee, 23, of Rancho Cordova, Calif., “was reported unaccounted for” on Feb. 4, according to the Coast Guard

Abigail Adams
·2-min read
Stocktrek Images/Getty The national security cutter USCGC Waesche (WMSL 751) departs Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, to participate in the at-sea phase of Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2014.

Stocktrek Images/Getty

The national security cutter USCGC Waesche (WMSL 751) departs Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, to participate in the at-sea phase of Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2014.

The Coast Guard has suspended its search for a crew member days after he was last seen on a ship in the eastern Pacific Ocean.

Seaman Bryan K. Lee, 23, of Rancho Cordova, Calif., “was reported unaccounted for” on Tuesday morning, Feb. 4, while the Cutter Waesche (WMSL 751) was operating in the eastern Pacific, the agency said in a news release on Monday, Feb. 10.

Lee was a crew member aboard the Cutter Waesche, which “was conducting a routine counter-drug patrol approximately 300 nautical miles south of Mexico” when Lee was discovered to be missing.

“The cutter immediately deviated from its patrol and initiated a comprehensive search effort,” the Coast Guard said.

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Related: Coast Guard Suspends Search for Boat Headed to Florida with About 20 Passengers Aboard

The Coast Guard suspended its search for Lee on Saturday, Feb. 8. Crews spent nearly 190 hours searching for Lee, “covering more than 19,000 square nautical miles” in the process.

The Mexican Navy assisted the U.S. Coast Guard and Air Force with the search, according to officials.

Cmdr. David Stern, search and rescue mission coordinator for Coast Guard District Eleven, offered condolences to Lee’s friends and family.

Related: U.S. Coast Guard Details Multi-Day Rescue of Mom, 7-Year-Old Daughter and Their Pets Stranded Off Hawaii

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He also thanked the crews who assisted with the search for scouring “a significant region of the Pacific Ocean” while looking for Lee.

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“Considering all pertinent factors and available information, we made the difficult decision to suspend the search,” Stern said in a statement. “This case has been extraordinarily challenging, and the decision to suspend the search pending new information is not an easy choice.”

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