Italian authorities have permanently suspended the search for 66-year-old Burgos businessman Juan José Mutilba Obregón, who went missing in the Ionian Sea after falling from his boat between the coasts of Sicily and Greece. The family received confirmation on Thursday from the Spanish Maritime Rescue Service, which relayed the Italian authorities’ decision to end the search operation after several days of searching.
Mutilba had set sail on Monday, August 17, from Syracuse (Sicily) with his wife, Carmen, 67, bound for Pylos, Greece. The incident occurred the following day: after catching a tuna, the businessman slipped and fell overboard while cleaning it. He shouted for help, but his wife, frozen in shock, was unable to maneuver the boat in time, and it continued on its course, moving away from the scene.
Carmen spent three days alone on board, with no cell service to raise the alarm, while a friend of the couple reported that the boat had veered off course. It wasn’t until Friday, August 21, when her cell phone signal returned, that she was able to contact land and activate the international rescue protocol. Emergency services then took control of the vessel to guide it to a safe harbor in Pylos.
Ten Days of Exploration in the Ionian Sea
The search operation, coordinated by the Reggio Calabria Maritime Rescue Subcenter, involved aircraft from the Italian Coast Guard and the assistance of merchant ships sailing in the area. The search area was established based on the vessel’s last known position, about 120 nautical miles southeast of Capo Spartivento.
According to the businessman’s son, Sergio, his aunt Nuria traveled to Syracuse, where Italian authorities confirmed to her last Tuesday that the protocol was still in effect and that the area would be combed through up to five times a day. It was she, in constant contact with the Spanish Consulate in Rome, who received notification of the operation’s definitive end.
The family attributes the extension of the search over the past few days to the media pressure generated by the case and has lamented the lack of greater institutional support from Spain. “The only solution we have is to try to get the Spanish authorities to really give us a hand so they can continue the search for a few more days,” said Sergio, who also called for more psychological support for his mother, a direct witness to the accident.
