The U.S. Navy officially named the sailor who went missing in Guam, a week after his last known appearance. The Navy and U.S. Coast Guard called off the search for Information Systems Technician 2nd Class Gabriel D. Holt on Thursday, having scoured more than 11,000 square nautical miles in the ocean over five days.
Holt, who served aboard the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier, has been listed as Duty Status Whereabouts Unknown. Holt was last seen onshore in Guam at 11:57 p.m. on April 18, when the USS Nimitz Carrier Strike Group arrived in port, and was listed as unaccounted for the following day. The Navy, along with local authorities and the U.S. Coast Guard, began a multi-day search for him.
“Our deepest sympathies are with the family, friends, and shipmates of Petty Officer Holt,” Capt. Doug Graber, the USS Nimitz’s commander, said in a Navy statement. “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.”
Holt was officially named by the Navy a day after the search was called off and his next of kin was notified.
The USS Nimitz was at Naval Base Guam for a port visit as part of its deployment to the western Pacific Ocean. The carrier strike group left port on April 21 while continuing the search. U.S. Navy and Coast Guard assets, including crews from Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 25, a P-8 maritime patrol plane and the cutter USCGC Oliver Henry, scoured both the coastal area and deeper waters around Guam for any sign of Holt.
The Nimitz is currently on what is expected to be its final deployment before decommissioning.