Missing Keys boater found dead from self-inflicted shooting, police say
A 56-year-old Florida Keys man who had been reported missing on the water on Nov. 5 was found dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, police said.
Lance Arnold Hartkopp, of 29859 Overseas Highway on Big Pine Key, was found aboard his 20-foot boat on Nov. 12 by passing boaters who contacted the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
FWC alerted the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, said Adam Linhardt, spokesman for the sheriff’s office, which announced the death Monday.
Asked about the delay in reporting the death, Linhardt said, “Poor communication on our part.”
Hartkopp’s body was found in the mangroves off Lois Key, which is also called Monkey Island, just south of Cudjoe Key oceanside at about 2 p.m. Nov. 12.
Autopsy results are pending, Linhardt said.
“Sheriff’s Office Major Crimes Unit detectives are investigating, however foul play does not appear to be a factor in Hartkopp’s death,” Linhardt said.
Hartkopp was reported missing by his roommate on Nov. 5 after his 2001 Dodge Ram pickup and boat trailer for his Chaparral walkaround boat were found at the end of Blimp Road on Cudjoe Key.
The Sheriff’s Office, U.S. Coast Guard and the FWC searched for him. The Coast Guard called off the search on Nov. 8.
The day before, the Coast Guard also suspended its search for another missing Keys boater, John Gyurtsak, 74, of Big Pine Key.
Gyurstak was last seen in his 34-foot pleasure craft, Thermocline, after it left Big Pine Key before 2 p.m. Nov. 4.
This story was originally published November 18, 2019 at 1:13 PM.
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