57 Year Old David Byles of Pinehurst, North Carolina Missing Since 1/20/14 After Cayman Islands Dive at Barracuda Wall off Seven Mile Beach (Update: Classified as Search & Recovery)

57 year old David Byles of  Pinehurst, NC has been missing since Sunday, January 20, 2014 in the Cayman Islands. David Byles went missing during an organized dive at Barracuda Wall off Grand Cayman’s Seven Mile Beach. According to accounts, Byles did surface with his wife from the dive and was in the process of swimming back to the dive boat when he disappeared. The dive company, Sunset Divers, part of the Sunset House diving resort in George Town, reported Byles missing on Sunday morning. Police air and marine units along with volunteers joined in the search for the missing tourist. Search efforts for the missing man have turned up his scuba tank, buoyancy control device and an article of his clothing in the water Monday. The items were located by police and volunteer divers at approximately 10:10 a.m. this morning, around 110 feet off the Barracuda Wall. However, David Byles is still missing.

Dave Byles

Rita and Dave Byles

The Royal Cayman Islands Police Service said 57-year-old David Byles of Pinehurst, North Carolina, was last seen Sunday morning during an organized dive at Barracuda Wall off Grand Cayman’s Seven Mile Beach.

Byles had surfaced with his wife after a dive and they were swimming about 100 yards back to the boat when he vanished from view, police said. An immediate search of the area by the boat’s crew failed to find him.

Since then, police divers and various other personnel have conducted marine and air searches. The missing man’s scuba tank, buoyancy control device and an article of his clothing were found in the water Monday, but there was no sign of Byles, authorities said.

UPDATE I: Cayman 27 – Search for missing diver to continue for 3rd day.

Updates, pics and VIDEO can be seen at Cayman 27.

UPDATE II: Search for diver now classed as ‘search and recovery’.

The search for missing diver David Byles continued into its third day and hope is dwindling that Mr. Byles will be found alive. Police have confirmed their efforts have now been classified as a “search and recovery” mission.

“We are now in our third day of searching,” said Inspector Ian Yearwood in a press statement to Cayman 27. “It’s clear to everyone involved that it’s now extremely unlikely that Mr. Byles will be found alive. We have shared our concerns with his wife and we continue to keep her fully updated as to the status of the search and of any developments.”

The search for Mr. Byles continues and Inspector Ian Yearwood is calling on any boat owners or divers who can assist in the search this afternoon to contact him on the following numbers – 649-7803 or 526-3159.

DEMOCRAT & MEDIA DOUBLE STANDARD … Oops, Looks like Obama Treasury Secretary Nominee Jack Lew was Sheltering his Money in the Cayman Islands … But It’s Not Romney So That’s OK

Imagine that, only sheltering monies in the Cayman Islands is an issue for Democrats and the MSM when it comes to Republicans and Mitt Romney. Where is that class warfare rhetoric from Obama now?

Don’t look now but President Barack Obama’s Treasury Secretary nominee Jack Lew’s nomination may have hit a bit of a snag. It would appear that he has made investments in the Cayman Island to shelter money. Of course this is not an issue now for the Obama White House, Democrats and the liberal MSM. It was only an issue for former 2012 GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney. Of course it will make no difference to Obama, he is the one who previously had Turbo tax cheat Timothy Geitner of the Treasury Secretary. What’s a little Cayman Island sheltered money?

Republicans have been critical of Lew since his nomination was announced last month. Sens. Jeff Sessions and Orrin Hatch have questioned his role in Medicare policy decisions and his role at Citigroup.

“He’s got to still answer some questions or we may have to postpone the hearing,” Hatch told POLITICO on Thursday. “Right now, I’ve agreed to the hearing date but it is subject to having answers to the questions that were raised. They aren’t difficult to answer, they can answer them.”

Sources said Republicans have not given any indication that they plan to use the information to stall the upcoming hearing or to block the nomination completely.

Committee members will have the chance to question Lew directly at the hearing next week.

“[They] have every right to bring these issues up, that is why we have the committee hearing,” Neary said. “No one is being stopped from asking any questions at these hearings.”

But of course there is no double standard here. Barack Obama was highly critical of GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney for similar investments in funds based in the Cayman Islands, but now has the nerve to nominate an individual who has done the same. How hypocritical could Obama be? Obama obsessed over offshore tax shelters, but nominated someone who has done the very same that Obama claims to be against. What a joke. The Obama White House actually had the nerve to defend Lew and his investment by stating that Lew paid all his taxes on all of his income. As an American Thinker states, the point  is not that Lew disclosed or paid taxes on his income, the issue at hand is the idea that it is evil to have an offshore account – at least it was for Mitt Romney. The specter of an offshore account raise the issue of hidden income and avoidance of taxes. That was the story when Obama slandered Romney, but some hoe it a different story when it comes to Jack Lew.

“President Obama has been almost obsessively critical of offshore investments. He called Ugland House ‘either the biggest building or the biggest tax scam on record,’” Grassley wrote in a statement late Friday.

“For years, we’ve talked about shutting down overseas tax havens that let companies set up operations to avoid paying taxes in America,” Obama said. He said his budget proposal would crack down on businesses which incorporate in places such as Ugland House.

Grassley said of the contrast between Obama’s statements and Lew’s past investment, “The irony is thick.

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