A Miami paddleboarder went missing while spearfishing earlier this week, and his family is seeking access to his location data from Garmin, the maker of the watch he was wearing.
According to the U.S. Coast Guard, Luciano Mercenari, 29, an experienced paddleboarder and fisherman, left his home in Key Biscayne, Florida’s Cape Florida region, around 5:15 p.m. on Monday and was last seen riding a light blue and orange paddleboard.
The department said Wednesday that the paddleboard and his bag were discovered by a good Samaritan about 8 to 10 miles offshore between Miami and Fort Lauderdale.
In a TikTok shared Tuesday evening, Allegra Jacchia, Mercenari’s cousin, said search crews are active but the family is growing increasingly anxious as it nears 24 hours since he was last seen, and she appealed for the public to help with the search.
Jacchia also made a desperate appeal to watch maker Garmin, pointing out that her cousin was wearing a Garmin watch with GPS tracking but that the family had no access to the data.
“He was wearing a Garmin brand watch, which is a trackable watch similar to the Apple Watch that may be able to identify his location. We have contacted Garmin directly but unfortunately they have been completely unhelpful,” Jacchia said in the video.
The manufacturer said the watch could not be tracked because it had not been updated to the latest software, but Jacchia’s family are persistently seeking clarification and hope something can be done to help track down Mercenari.
“We’re trying to figure out if there’s anything we can do for them, because they literally could have saved Luc’s life and they were just completely unresponsive and completely uncooperative,” she added, pleading with viewers to pass the video on to someone at the company who might be able to help.
The Post has reached out to Garmin for comment.
At the time of his disappearance, Mercenari was wearing gray shorts and a light gray long-sleeved “Leafs-Chiefs” rash guard. According to the Miami New Times.
He is 6 feet 2 inches tall, weighs approximately 200 pounds, has short, dark brown hair and a thin beard.
Several agencies are assisting in the search, including the Coast Guard, Miami-Dade Police and the Florida Department of Fish and Wildlife.
