Azle fisherman missing after night trip on Eagle Mountain Lake; boat found empty
A search is underway at Eagle Mountain Lake after a North Texas man went missing during what was supposed to be a routine night fishing trip.
According to his family, 41-year-old Ruben Fausone hasn't been seen since Tuesday night. His wife, Amy, said night fishing was something he did often, which is why she's struggling to understand how his boat and phone ended up abandoned — on opposite sides of the lake.
"He went out around 7:45," she said. "We last texted around 8:20. I woke up around 11:45 and thought, 'It's almost midnight, why isn't he home?'"
Phone found at marina
Amy said her husband's phone last pinged at Augie's Sunset Café and Marina — a location she said Ruben had never mentioned before. With no word from him and worsening weather the next morning, panic set in.
"I'm just hoping somebody finds him," she said.
She drove to the marina, where someone had found his phone on the dock. Later that afternoon, law enforcement with the Tarrant Regional Water District — now leading the investigation — located his gray and blue fishing boat on the opposite side of the lake. It was floating between two docks, undamaged and unanchored.
Witness recalls late-night sighting
"The stories are like, he got into his boat and left, and they saw it just drifting in the water at one point," Amy said.
Jeff Hunter, who lives nearby, said he saw Ruben speaking with another man on the dock late Tuesday night. Around 2 a.m., he spotted Ruben's boat in the middle of the lake.
"On the weekends? Yeah, you might see that," Hunter said. "But a weekday? It's very odd."
Amy said her husband would never swim at night.
Family pleads for help
As search efforts continue, the family is pleading for help. Amy shared that Ruben was last seen wearing a bright teal shirt and hopes someone may recognize him and come forward.
"Right now, I'm hoping somebody reaches out and can tell us he's OK," she said. "I just want to find him and make sure he's OK."
As of Thursday afternoon, law enforcement said the search is ongoing.
