The search team has found two more small-sized diving bottles in the area where Tomás Gimeno and Anna, one of his daughters, are being searched for, police sources have informed Europa Press. Investigators believe the bottles belong to the father of the minors.
This is a step forward in the investigation after recovering Olivia's body last June 10. The search device was activated after the mother of the girls Olivia and Anna, six and one year old, alerted the Civil Guard on April 27 that her ex-partner, Tomás Gimeno, had not returned the minors to her.
On June 10, the oceanographic vessel 'Ángeles Alvariño' located two sports bags on the seabed, one of them broken and empty and the other containing Olivia's lifeless body. Days before, on June 7, the ship's marine robot had recovered a compressed air bottle and a blanket in the area where the missing girls were being searched for.
In the last hours, the Government Delegate in the Canary Islands, Anselmo Pestana, had asked not to lose hope that more clues or evidence would be found that would indicate "something more" regarding Anna and Tomás Gimeno, indicating that it was necessary to wait for the work being carried out by the oceanographic vessel.
The ship set sail first thing in the morning after having to make a technical stop in the port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife since Tuesday night as a result of the poor sea conditions and the strong wind that was affecting the search area for Anna and her father. However, a new breakdown has caused it to return to port, this time to the Dique del Este.
Regarding the possibilities of finding the remains, the delegate stressed that one cannot speak of probabilities. "It was already difficult to find clues and Olivia was found, something that was unprecedented. It will be extraordinary if something more is found," Pestana commented.
The delegate pointed out that the oceanographic vessel will continue searching for Anna and Tomás until the Ministry of Science and Innovation decides that the searches should end so that the ship can join the work of the Spanish Institute of Oceanography (IEO).
Anselmo Pestana pointed out that the ship continues to search the area where the signal of Tomás's mobile phone was lost and where his boat appeared thanks to a third "very extended" extension, and wanted to value the work carried out by the ship and the "extraordinary" commitment that its crew has had with this case.
He also reported that the Civil Guard is studying other means that can replace the 'Ángeles Alvariño' and the proposals that exist in the market and the public resources available. The intention is for it to be a submarine that is capable of tracking depths that range between 1,000 and 1,500 meters, also in an area that is not easy for any instrument that exists in the market and is available, Pestana pointed out.
Beatriz Zimmermann, mother of Anna and Olivia, is preparing the celebration of a public funeral next week to serve as a tribute to her daughters and to thank the support she has received from the entire society. The presence of public officials from the Government of the Canary Islands and also from the Government of Spain is planned. At the moment, the day of the funeral celebration is unknown.
