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June 16, 2006

Update: Newport woman only American on missing boat

NEWPORT -- Of the four people aboard the missing sailboat Free Spirit, only Molly Finn is an American citizen.

Finn, 19, of Newport, and a 2004 graduate of Barrington's St. Andrew's School, had met the other passengers in the past year when the boat was docked in Portsmouth for repairs, according to Finn's family.

She became friendly with Jack Bielecki, the 19-year-old son of the boat's owner, Jacek Bielecki, and was invited to join the two British citizens and a United Kingdom citizen for "a long" voyage.

In an interview today, Finn's family said they did not know exactly where the Free Spirit was headed. They were told it would be a long trip from Newport to Europe or even farther.

The Coast Guard began searching for the boat yesterday after getting a phone call from Jacek Bielecki's stepdaughter in Newport, stating that the vessel and crew were in distress and needed to be rescued immediately. Bielecki had called her using a satellite phone.

Today, rescue teams discovered a debris field in the search area that included a gas can, a wooden boat door, and a milk carton. There was no confirmation, however, that the debris was from the Free Spirit.

The Coast Guard has released a map of the 6,500-square-mile search area and a photo of the boat.

-- With reports from Journal staff writer Richard Salit

Posted by Steve Peoples  at 4:26 PM | Permalink

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