A body spotted floating in the ocean south of Gabriola Island and recovered by Canadian Coast Guard hovercraft on Tuesday has been identified.
RCMP reported Friday the body was of a man from the Lower Mainland
The Canadian Coast Guard Joint Rescue Coordination Centre said the crew of a pleasure craft reported seeing a body floating about four kilometres south of Gabriola Island.
The hovercraft was launched at about 1:15 p.m., recovered the body and transferred it to an RCMP vessel.
The coast guard continued a co-ordinated precautionary search of the area following the recovery operation to look for possible wreckage, watercraft in distress or other persons in the water.
Nanaimo RCMP reported no identification was found with the body, but investigators have since determined from video surveillance footage that the man boarded the ferry MV Queen of Alberni as a walk-on passenger at Tsawwassen ferry terminal bound for Duke Point June 29 at about 8 p.m., but was not seen disembarking at Duke Point.
On Friday, coroner Barb McLintock said how and why the victim came to be in the water is still under investigation and efforts were still underway to notify all family members of his death, so his name was not being released.
Anyone with information on this incident, please contact Cpl. Markus Muntener of the Gabriola Island RCMP at 250-247-8966 or Cpl. Sarah Mattes of the Nanaimo RCMP at 250-754-2345.