What was first believed to be a tragic boating accident has now spiraled into a far darker and more unsettling mystery.
Federal investigators have revealed a stunning development in the disappearance of two well-known attorneys — Randall Spivey, 57, and his nephew Brandon Billmaier, 33 — suggesting their high-end fishing vessel may have continued traveling with no one on board, burning fuel and cutting through the Gulf of Mexico on its own until it finally exhausted its supply and drifted to a stop.
According to sources familiar with the FBI investigation, the boat’s final location raised immediate red flags.
“That’s not a place a person would ever steer to,” one investigator reportedly told family members during a private briefing. The implication was chilling: after the men vanished, the 42-foot Freeman boat, ‘Unstopp-A-Bull,’ appeared to move under autopilot-like conditions — or at least without human control — for an extended period of time.
The case took a dramatic turn after the U.S. Coast Guard officially suspended its search on December 22, 2025, prompting the FBI to step in and treat the disappearance as a full missing-persons investigation rather than an active rescue.
A Routine Trip That Never Returned
The nightmare began before sunrise on Friday, December 19, when Spivey and Billmaier departed Fort Myers for what was supposed to be a routine deep-sea fishing trip roughly 100 miles offshore. Both men were seasoned boaters with decades of experience and a reputation for caution on the water. Friends say there was nothing reckless about the plan.
They were expected home by sunset.
When hours passed with no contact, concern quickly turned to panic. Around 9 p.m., their wives — Tricia Spivey and Deborah Billmaier — made the call no family ever wants to make, alerting authorities that something was terribly wrong.
Within minutes, the Coast Guard launched a massive response.
The Boat — Found Running, But Empty
The search stretched across 6,700 square miles of open water — helicopters, cutters, fixed-wing aircraft, and volunteer boats sweeping an area roughly the size of Connecticut. Conditions were manageable: light winds, moderate seas, nothing that should have overwhelmed experienced mariners.
Then came the discovery that changed everything.
In the early hours of Saturday, December 20, a Coast Guard helicopter spotted the “Unstopp-A-Bull” drifting 70 miles west of Fort Myers.
From the air, the boat looked normal.
From closer range, it was horrifying.
The vessel was upright. The engines were still running and in gear. Fishing equipment was neatly in place. Personal belongings were untouched.
But no one was aboard.
A rescue swimmer was lowered onto the boat to secure it, shut down the engines, and anchor it until it could be towed. There were no visible signs of collision, no damage, no blood, no indication of a struggle.
Yet something was clearly wrong.
Fuel, Throttle, and a Disturbing Path
As investigators examined the boat more closely, a troubling picture emerged. The throttle position and fuel consumption showed the engines had been engaged long enough for the vessel to travel far beyond the area where the men were believed to be fishing.
By the time it was found, fuel levels were dangerously low.
Investigators now believe the boat may have continued forward for hours — possibly much longer — with no one steering, following a straight or slightly drifting trajectory until fuel exhaustion forced it to stop.
GPS data revealed deviations that didn’t align with intentional navigation.
“The boat didn’t stop where a captain would stop,” one source explained. “It kept going. And going. Like no one was there to tell it otherwise.”
No Distress Call. No Warning.
Perhaps the most haunting element of the case is what didn’t happen.
There was no mayday call.
No radio transmission.
No activated emergency beacon.
For two safety-conscious attorneys who understood maritime risk, that silence is deeply troubling.
Theories range from a sudden medical emergency, to an unexpected accident, to a rapid sequence of events that left no time to react. Some speculate a single incident may have pulled both men into the water within seconds.
Boating experts note that falls overboard can happen instantly — and survival time in open Gulf waters without immediate rescue is devastatingly short.
Families Left With Questions — and Resolve
Despite the Coast Guard’s suspension, the families have refused to surrender hope.
In a joint statement, they thanked search crews while acknowledging the grim reality:
“Given the enormous resources deployed in the most logical areas, there is the highest confidence that if Randy and Brandon were on the surface, they would have been found.”
Still, volunteers across the Southeast joined private search efforts, some paying fuel costs out of pocket. Deborah Billmaier even offered a reward for information leading to answers.
Both men are remembered as deeply compassionate. Spivey, a Fort Myers legal fixture for over 30 years, was known as a mentor and advocate for the injured. Billmaier, who joined Shiner Law Group in 2023, was described as humble, optimistic, and full of life.
A Boat That Kept Going — Alone
As forensic teams now analyze electronics, satellite data, and fuel patterns, one image continues to haunt investigators and families alike:
A powerful boat slicing through open water…
Engines humming…
No hands on the wheel…
No voices on deck…
Moving forward until it simply couldn’t anymore.
Two men dedicated to justice on land — now swallowed by the sea.
The FBI urges anyone with information to come forward. Until then, the mystery remains unsolved, drifting between evidence and unanswered questions — just like the boat that refused to stop.