Olivia Newton John's missing boyfriend staged his own death

Almost four years ago Olivia Newton John's former boyfriend was reported dead after falling off his boat off the California coast.

Now, according to a team of investigators from Texas, the cameraman Patrick McDermott set off his own death so he can avoid financial debts and enable his teenage son Chance to receive a $A150,965 ($US100,000) life insurance policy.

One of the lead investigators, Philip Klein is certain that McDermott is alive and that he's been trying to hide along the Mexican and South American coastline.

“He’s alive - there’s no doubt in my mind, this guy’s alive,” Klein said.“Everything was bad in this guy’s life. There was nothing good."
Klein has been tracking down the former cameraman for years setting up a hi-tech trap to help locate McDermott by making a website called findpatrickmcdermott.com.

“We put what we call a trap on the web site where we can tell each I-address that comes in to the web site,” Klein said.
According to the searches there were several hits on the website from Cabo San Lucas (in Mexico) last place McDermott was seen, by at least 17 eyewitnesses.

The fugitive was in a relationship with Olivia Newton John for almost nine years and was 48 when he was declared downed by the US Coast Guard on November 2008.

The investigations continue.