What has happened to the UK sailor who vanished in Gran Canaria?

James Nunan was on an around-the-world sailing trip when he vanished in Gran Canaria. His family suspect foul play, and a private investigator believes he was unlawfully killed due to evidence found on his boat.

Now, investigation reports seen by the BBC give an exclusive insight into the manhunt for Nunan. What do they show?

Nunan, known to his family as Jemsie, set off in March 2025 and hoped his once-in-a-lifetime trip would one day land him in Brazil.

But not long after buying dinner on 19 August, the 34-year-old disappeared without a trace from the Spanish island.

His family say on the night Nunan, from Colchester, vanished, he had moored his boat and headed to nearby Las Palmas city centre, visiting Paddy's Anchor bar with his miniature Jack Russell, Thumbelina.

He is said locally to have told a man he was about to sail to Lanzarote.

He filmed himself on a Facebook Live broadcast in the hours before he was last seen, walking along Playa del Confital beach, north-west of the city centre.

His boat was found 100 miles (160km) from his last known location in Las Palmas six days later. His dog was found on board and reunited with his family.

According to reports from the investigation, seen by the BBC, a bar worker who recognised Nunan said he was drunk and left by 22:00.

CCTV then captured Nunan a six-minute walk away at Rico Doner Kebab, where he purchased dinner. His backpack was stolen from outside the shop.

Nunan's half-sister, Nikita Goddard, from Lincoln, told the BBC he kept his passport as it was around his neck.

The reports say shop staff tried to help him find his bag, but he left after a failed search at about 22:39.

Nunan, who also has links to Reading, was last seen reporting his passport missing at a police station at 06:15 the next morning.

The BBC understands a manhunt for Nunan began five days after he was last seen.

Officers in Madrid were alerted on 25 August, after taking a call at 08:38 local time that his boat was overdue at a port.

A surveillance aircraft was dispatched, and it spotted the vessel, named Kehaar, at 11:14.

It was at sea with no one onboard about 50 miles (80km) south of Gran Canaria and 100 miles from Las Palmas.

Officers then instructed a nearby container ship, the MSC Lorenza, to sound its horn "repeatedly" at Kehaar to alert anyone onboard.

Crews spotted Thumbelina onboard at 14:39, but an hour later, it was confirmed no humans were present.

Kehaar was towed to Arguineguín harbour in Gran Canaria at 00:38 the next morning.

A search plane was sent to look for Nunan at 12:05. When this proved unsuccessful, it was urged to look again "with extreme vigilance" at 08:30 on 27 August.

Ports were also checked in Lanzarote and Gran Canaria.

The weather between 19 and 25 August in the area where his boat was found is described by police as having "often strong" winds and moderate to high currents at sea.

They also recovered a Garmin smartwatch on Kehaar and emailed the company asking for its last three tracked locations.

They all came back as various locations east of Las Palmas. No reading could be obtained beyond 18:14 on 20 August.

It is not clear if Nunan was wearing the watch at this stage.

The documents seen by the BBC include a report by the Guardia Civil of its findings after examining Nunan's 8.7m-long (28.5ft) vessel.

Stains believed to be blood were found on a toilet and control lever, and samples were taken for testing.

Police have not disclosed what the results of those tests were.

Electronic devices belonging to Nunan were also found badly fire-damaged onboard, with some seeming to have been dismantled.

Detectives also hint at a possible disturbance.

"There is a great deal of disarray among all the belongings," they write.

Clothes and objects, including tools and screws, were "thrown on the floor" in a way that seemed "out of place", the report states.

A private investigator hired by the family, who spoke to the BBC on the condition of anonymity, agrees the scene was suspicious.

"The reported condition raises the possibility that events unfolded abruptly, rather than gradually," he says.

There were also cuts, suspected to be from a serrated knife, to the sail, his family have claimed. However, this did not appear in the reports.

"Each of these details might be explainable on its own, but collectively they don't align with an accident at sea," the private investigator says.

"The most basic unanswered question is how electronics were burned to that extent on a boat in the middle of the ocean, with no evidence of a fire whatsoever."

However, there are also details seen by the BBC that suggest Kehaar was not seaworthy and possibly dangerous to its captain.

Police observed the guardrail cable, which runs around the vessel's perimeter to prevent someone from falling overboard, was detached from a bolt.

The wind vane steering system was also broken, as were several ropes. Police record this would have rendered the boat hard to control.

Goddard believes this may not have been wear and tear and that a third party could have been behind the damage.

It is not disputed that Nunan made it back to his boat after reporting his passport missing, as documents from his meeting with police were recovered onboard.

While it has never been officially confirmed, the BBC understands police suspect Nunan got drunk and fell overboard.

They have not ended their searches and will keep Nunan listed as a missing person until either a body is found or his 110th birthday is reached.

When approached for more information, the Guardia Civil said it was pursuing a prosecution and could not comment while this was ongoing.

It said Nunan's disappearance was "before the courts", but did not elaborate further.

The private investigator claims to have uncovered evidence that Nunan had unwittingly met with suspected criminals he claimed were linked to human trafficking and sexual offences in the days before he went missing.

Further documents from the investigation suggest two people were arrested in October. It is not known if these people are linked to the people Nunan is said to have met.

But the police stance on not commenting means questions about this and the wider case have not been answered.

However, the BBC has been given an insight into what they believe Nunan's mental state was prior to going missing.

He is described as being drunk, unkempt and repeatedly falling asleep while reporting his passport missing,

Witnesses they interviewed after Nunan disappeared claimed he often did not have his boat's lights on at night and, on one occasion, did not wear a life jacket when rowing an inflatable canoe to the vessel.

The report concludes Nunan left Las Palmas intentionally on his boat, but it is not clear what happened next.

Goddard, Nunan's mother and the private investigator all insist a third party was involved.

They say he worked as a bricklayer to fund his trip and planned to continue it.

Goddard does not believe Nunan fell overboard, as he could have "very easily swam back" because the engine was turned off.

She thinks it is suspicious the family were never told blood was found on Kehaar, that the sails were cut or that Nunan's fire-damaged devices were onboard - which they uncovered themselves.

As for reporting his passport missing, Goddard says: "This shows he was clearly coherent enough in his thinking."

The private investigator adds: "One thing is very clear: any other law enforcement agency doesn't just write this off as an accidental drowning."

Goddard now wants UK authorities to take over the investigation, but in the meantime, she is fundraising to get the private detective to the island.

A Foreign Office spokesman said officials were "in contact with the local authorities" and supporting the family.

But Goddard says: "It's a lot for any family to have to carry on living life as normal when there's so many unanswered questions.

"In this limbo-land, we can't do anything. Maybe he's still alive? We just don't know."

Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.