A New York City police officer reportedly went missing while touring a waterfall in the South American country of Guyana.
New York City Police Department (NYPD) Officer Gladstone Haynes, of the 70th Precinct serving Flatbush, Brooklyn, is listed as missing, but presumed dead after he was pulled beneath the water by a strong current near Orinduik Falls, which is on the border of Guyana and Brazil, N.Y. Daily News reported.
The incident reportedly happened around 2:15 p.m. Sunday, according to Guyanese news site Demerara Waves Online News. Haynes, a 17-year veteran of the NYPD who joined the force in 2005, reportedly had flown on a small plane with friends and other tourists for a tour of the falls.
"He got swept away by the current of the water," his cousin, Allison Lawrence, told the Daily News. "He was an avid swimmer, so it’s a surprise."
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Another unnamed tourist present at the time told Demerara Waves there was no tour guide with the group, and the pilot, a man from Nicaragua, instructed the group to walk down a path to get to the falls on their own.
It’s unclear if Haynes was swimming at the time or if he slipped and fell into the water before being dragged under.
The tourist, who, with others in the group, ran back to inform the pilot of what happened, said the pilot did not have a satellite phone on him and did not have radio connection back to the airport, delaying emergency response.
"We are assisting the State Department and local authorities with their investigation," an NYPD spokesperson said in an email to Fox News Digital asking to confirm Haynes’s disappearance.
By Monday night, seven members of the Guyana Defence Force Special Forces, the Divisional Police Commander and four policemen were conducting a search for Haynes by the falls, according to Demerara Waves.
Haynes, whose father served in the Guyanese police force, lived in Brooklyn with his partner and three children, according to family. "He loved his job," Lawrence told Daily News. "He was a 17-year veteran. He always wanted to be a police officer because his father was a police officer."
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"He’s kind-hearted and loving," Haynes’ cousin added. "He’s a hard-working young man who would give you the clothes off his back. We’re taking it hard. We’re praying for him."
