Andrew Witton was sailing his beloved yacht Kaileia from Tahiti to the Galapagos Islands when he disappeared in the middle of the Pacific Ocean in January 2007.

The only other crew member, Simon Golding, said he had been sleeping below decks and woke to find Mr Witton was no longer on board, Glebe Coroner's Court heard today.

As an inquest began into Mr Witton's death, Geoffrey Denman, the counsel assisting the coroner, said "somehow or other [he] went overboard".
 

The body of Mr Witton, 51, of Coffs Harbour, has never been found.

"Did he jump? Was he pushed? Was there foul play? Was it an accident?" Mr Denman asked.

"There were all sorts of possibilities which we will try to pursue."

He told the State Coroner, Mary Jerram, that Mr Witton's family hoped the inquest would provide answers.

Mr Golding had said he had turned the yacht around and searched for Mr Witton for two days and two nights without success.
 

"There are some circumstances surrounding Andy's disappearance that have caused the family to question the account given by Simon Golding," Mr Denman said.

"We're going to try to make sense of the untimely end to Andy's life, which was full of such adventure and a freedom of spirit."

One of the "concerns" in the case involved Mr Golding's refusal of an offer by people on another yacht, which he came into contact with on January 17, to use their long-distance radio to contact authorities and Mr Witton's family, to tell them about the loss.

The inquest continues.

- with AAP

AAP

A sailor whose skipper went missing in the Pacific Ocean denies pushing him overboard to take control of the yacht, saying the allegation is "ridiculous".

Simon Charles Golding, 40, dismissed claims he was involved in the death of his friend, Andy Witton, 51, who disappeared from his yacht Kaileia on January 13, 2007.

The pair were sailing from Tahiti to the Galapagos Islands when Mr Golding said he awoke to find his shipmate missing in a remote part of the Pacific, about 600km south of Pitcairn Island.

Mr Witton's body has never been found.

Mr Golding told Glebe Coroner's Court that after finding his companion missing he began a two-day grid search, which he only called off after getting caught in a cyclone.

He has said the yacht's high-frequency radio stopped working a week into their voyage, and he was unable to call for help in the search.

Counsel assisting the inquest, Geoffrey Denman, accused Mr Golding of fabricating the story about the search, and questioned why the missing sailor hadn't mentioned the broken radio in his ship's log.

Mr Denman asked why Mr Golding refused assistance from another yacht on January 17, despite the boat suffering significant damage in the cyclone.

He also questioned his reasons for sailing on to the Galapagos Islands instead of stopping at the closer ports of Easter or Pitcairn islands.

Irene Hayward, captain of the yacht Cutty Hunk, told the inquest she offered Mr Golding help after he told her about his lost crewmate.

But Mr Golding declined an offer to sail in a convoy to Easter Island, or to use the Cutty Hunk's radio, and instead chose to sail the much greater distance to the Galapagos Islands.

Mr Golding said he declined help from the Cutty Hunk because he felt he had the situation "under control".

He had not wanted to use the yacht's radio because he wanted to notify authorities of Mr Witton's disappearance when he made it to the Galapagos Islands, he said.

"I saw it as my duty to tell people, to tell Andy's family, and to let my family know I was OK," he said on Friday.

Mr Denman accused Mr Golding of not reporting Mr Witton's death until February 10 because he wanted to prolong his time on the boat.

On Wednesday, Mr Golding's ex-girlfriend, Kylie Dean, said he had wanted to have his own boat and once joked "the only way he would get one would be to go sailing and push someone overboard".

Mr Golding denies ever saying this.

Earlier in the inquest, Mr Denman accused him of "engineering" his shipmate's disappearance.

The allegations were "crazy", Mr Golding said.

"I think it's a ridiculous and stupid theory," he told the inquest.

Questioned by his lawyer Gordon Elliott, Mr Golding said he had not pushed his companion overboard or killed him.

"Andy and I were great friends," Mr Golding said.

He said he had continued onto the Galapagos Islands because that was "our goal".

"You were honouring a fallen comrade?" Mr Elliott asked.

"That's part of the reason, yes," Mr Golding said.

The inquest before NSW Coroner Mary Jerram resumes on Monday.

Missing yachtsman mystery referred to DPP

Posted Thu Dec 10, 2009 2:40pm AEDT - ABC
 

The New South Wales Coroner has recommended the disappearance of a yachtsman be referred to the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to see if criminal charges should be laid.

It follows the end of an inquest into the death of 51-year-old Andrew Witton, from Coffs Harbour in northern New South Wales, who disappeared while sailing from Tahiti to the Galapagos Islands with his friend Simon Golding, 40, in 2007.

His body has never been found.

Simon Golding's ex-girlfriend Kylie Dean, previously told the inquiry that he once joked that the only way he could afford a yacht of his own was to go sailing and push someone overboard.

The inquest heard that Simon Golding denies having anything to do with his friend's disappearance.

It also heard he waited almost a month before reporting his friend missing.

Today the inquest re-opened to hear evidence from a new witness - Kylie Dean's father, Glen Miles.

He said he believed his daughter's evidence, but added that she was bitter after her relationship with Simon Golding ended.

Mr Miles said that, as an experienced yachtsman, he was surprised that, days after Andrew Witton went overboard, Simon Golding did not take the chance to board another yacht instead of sailing by himself to the Galapagos Islands.

The Coroner Mary Jerram said there is a reasonable chance a jury could convict a person based on the evidence.