Police were still searching off the Florida coast on Thursday for Guma Aguiar, the 35-year-old Jewish-American multimillionaire, philanthropist and majority stockholder in the Hapoel Jerusalem basketball team, who has been missing since he took his speedboat out to sea on Wednesday night. The Brazilian-born Aguiar, who splits his time with his wife and three children between Jerusalem and Florida, was apparently caught in inclement weather. The Florida Coast Guard and police found his boat on a nearby beach with the motor still running and lights on, but with no one aboard. The multimillionaire's wife, Jamie Aguiar, told police that she had thought her husband was in his office working, but one of her domestic staff told her that he had in fact taken the boat out to sea, and this was the last time anyone had seen him. Local police have officially declared Aguiar missing and have asked residents to help search for him. Police are also investigating the circumstances leading up to the boat ride. Aguiar's associates in Israel said that his mental health had taken a turn for the worse recently, and that he had tried taking his own life twice over the past few weeks. Aguiar has had a history of mental illness. In 2010, his family forcibly checked him in to a psychiatric hospital in Tel Aviv for treatment. In an interview he gave to a local Jerusalem newspaper before being committed, Aguiar claimed that he and his wife had crossed into the Gaza Strip on foot and had met with Israeli soldier Gilad Schalit, who was being held by Hamas at the time. A statement from the Hapoel Jerusalem basketball team read: "We hope everything turns out well with Guma. We are anxiously waiting to hear what happened to him." Team chairman Danny Klein, who was in close contact with Aguiar, said Wednesday night, "I hope Guma is found, safe and sound." At the Beitar Jerusalem soccer club, where Aguiar began his involvement in Israeli sports by pouring money into the team, officials were stunned by the news of his disappearance. "Guma is a dear man who is beloved by Beitar Jerusalem," the team said in a statement. "We all hope everything will be well with him and we hope to hear good news soon."
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שיתוף כתבה
Hapoel Jerusalem basketball team owner goes missing at sea
Guma Aguiar, Jewish-American multimillionaire and majority stockholder in Hapoel Jerusalem basketball team, goes missing off Florida coast Wednesday • Only his boat has been found • According to associates, he has had mental health issues recently.
