Wife Of Missing NFL Boater Files For Death Certificate

NFL player Marquis Cooper’s wife is seeking a presumptive death certificate a week after the Coast Guard called off its search for the missing boater and two friends. Rebekah Cooper filed a petition for the certificate Wednesday in civil court in Florida.

AP
Published: March 12, 2009

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TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - NFL player Marquis Cooper’s wife is seeking a presumptive death certificate a week after the Coast Guard called off its search for the missing boater and two friends.

Rebekah Cooper filed a petition for the certificate Wednesday in civil court in Florida.

The Oakland Raiders linebacker departed from Clearwater Pass west of Tampa, Feb. 28 in a 21-foot boat. He was with free-agent NFL defensive lineman Corey Smith and two former University of South Florida football players.

Their boat overturned after encountering rough waters in the Gulf of Mexico.

Nick Schuyler was found clinging to the boat two days later. The other men have not been found.

With the presumptive death certificate, Cooper’s beneficiaries can collect life insurance and other benefits.