A YOUNG father presumed dead after falling overboard from a fishing boat was named today as 22-year-old Samuel Shaw McCulloch of Portland.
Mr McCulloch was reported missing from the Devon-owned crabber Etoile des Ondes approximately 20 miles north of Alderney close to the main shipping lane in the English Channel at 10.50am on Saturday.
Portland Coastguard assisted French colleagues in the search, which was called off at the end of Saturday.
Shipping in the area has been advised to keep a watching brief.
Dorset Police said they had recorded the incident as a missing person. A spokesman said: "Our thoughts are with his family."
The Maritime Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) is conducting preliminary enquiries into the cause of the accident.
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