Missing
Victor Marquis Cooper
Cooper, approximately 2009
Date and time person was reported missing : 03/01/2009
Missing location (approx) :
Clearwater, Florida
Missing classification : Lost/Injured Missing
Gender : Male
Ethnicity :
Black
DOB : 03/11/1982 (39)
Age at the time of disappearance: 26 years old
Height / Weight : 6'3, 213 pounds
Distinguishing characteristics, birthmarks, tattoos
: African-American male. Black hair, brown eyes. Cooper goes by his middle name, Marquis, and most accounts refer to him by that name. He has a scar on his face and tattoos on both arms.
Information on the case from local sources, may or may not be correct : Cooper was last seen in Clearwater, Florida on March 1, 2009. He was on a 21-foot fishing boat off the Gulf Coast with three other men: Corey Smith, William Bleakley and Nick Schuyler. When they didn't return, the Coast Guard launched a search.
They found Schuyler at 1:35 a.m. on March 2, clinging to the side of the overturned boat. He was suffering the effects of hypothermia and dehydration. The other three men were missing. Schuyler stated they had disappeared one after another. An extensive search turned up no sign of Bleakley, Cooper or Smith. They are presumed to be lost at sea.
Cooper is originally from Gilbert, Arizona. He got a degree in sociology from the University of Washington. After college he became a professional football player. He played for the Oakland Raiders at the time of his disappearance. His body has never been found.
Other information and links : ncy
Clearwater Police Department
727-562-4080
September 2021 updates and sources
Florida Department of Law Enforcement
The Seattle Times
CNN
Find a Grave
October 12, 2004. January 2, 2019; picture added.
Interactive Missing Person Search Map
