THE son of a prominent resort owner in Bohol drowned while spearfishing off Virgin Island in Brgy. Poblacion, Panglao, on Sunday, police said.
The 39-year-old victim, a married resident of Dauis town, was not identified publicly.
According to Master Sgt. Renante Foculan of the Panglao police, the victim left early Sunday with a fellow free diver and initially fished in waters off Bolod, Panglao. They transferred to another spot near Virgin Island around 8 a.m.
The victim’s companion briefly left the site to relieve himself and, upon returning, could no longer see his partner in the water.
“Usually after about three minutes, divers resurface. When he didn’t, the companion pulled the rope connected to the spear, but the victim was no longer attached,” Foculan said.
Unable to locate his friend underwater, the companion sought help from nearby Bantay Dagat personnel, who then coordinated with divers for a search operation.
Divers eventually recovered the body at a depth of about 28 meters around 11 a.m. The victim was no longer responsive.
Foculan said the victim had been wearing weights and was free diving without a breathing apparatus. Based on the data from his dive computer, the victim had descended to 16 meters and attempted to resurface but may have fallen short by two meters due to breath exhaustion.
An autopsy confirmed there were no signs of foul play.
