Foul Play a Possibility in Fisherman’s Disappearance

As the Coast Guard continued to search Tuesday for a missing Newport Beach fisherman, authorities said they are looking into the possibility that foul play might have been involved in his disappearance.

After finding debris believed to be from Ken Philipps’ boat about 140 miles southwest of San Diego, Coast Guard investigators said they are puzzled over how the vessel, which left Newport Beach headed for Santa Catalina Island, could have drifted so far south.

“There’s some critical pieces of the puzzle that are missing,” Coast Guard Lt. Dan Deptula said. “We’re looking into all possibilities.”

Philipps, a familiar face on the Balboa Peninsula waterfront, was last seen Easter morning as he set sail in his 38-foot wooden boat, the Nancy L. Friends reported him missing three days later, prompting a massive Coast Guard search.

Authorities called off the search last week but resumed it Monday after detecting a signal from an emergency radio beacon registered to the Nancy L. The signal came from 35 miles beyond the southernmost point to which Coast Guard investigators believed Philipps’ craft could have drifted.

The crews of two helicopters, a cargo plane and two Coast Guard cutters found scattered debris identified as parts of the Nancy L, as well as fuel drums, a cooler, a life preserver and the beacon.

Required aboard commercial vessels, such beacons can be turned on manually or activated automatically when they hit the water. Investigators are puzzled because the beacon on the Nancy L was silent for so long. One possibility is that the fisherman was washed overboard and his boat drifted for days before sinking, authorities said.

Police investigators will focus on whether Philipps had any enemies or was embroiled in any conflicts, though nothing of that sort has been found yet, Newport Beach Police Sgt. Mike McDermott said.

About midday Tuesday, searchers spotted a 4-mile long oil slick near where the debris was found. “Though it’s speculation, we’re thinking something did sink there and perhaps it’s the Nancy L,” Deptula said.