[imagesource: Getty Images]

Either Olivia Newton-John’s on-off lover either died at sea or he faked his own death, depending on who you believe.

The Grease singer/actress died at the age of 73 on Monday after a 30-year battle with cancer.

All that time she may have been battling with the uncertainty of where her ex, Patrick McDermott, could possibly have landed up after he never returned from an overnight fishing trip off the California coast in 2005.

The couple, seen above, was on and off for nine years and had reportedly called it quits right before McDermott mysteriously disappeared at sea.

According to an investigation carried out by the US Coast Guard, the American cameraman likely fell off the boat and drowned.

Image: Reuters

He has been presumed dead ever since but there are a few conspiracy theorists claiming that he faked the entire ordeal as an elaborate tax/debt-evasion scheme.

The boat he was on, aptly called Freedom, was headed to San Clemente Island, which is approximately 90 kilometres away from the San Pedro marina in Los Angeles:

Image: AP

None of the 22 people on that fishing boat saw anything suspicious, adding to the conspiracy of it all, per Celebrity:

The boat returned as scheduled the next day and no incidents were recorded, but it was discovered 10 days later that McDermott had not returned with the vessel. The alarm was raised by his ex-wife, actress Yvette Nipar, when he failed to appear for a visitation scheduled with his son Chance, then 13.

According to reports, no one had seen or heard from McDermott since the fishing trip. His bag, wallet and keys were later located at the boat’s office, and his car was still parked at the marina.

Police finalised the missing person case on July 11.

Numerous manhunts by police, media, and private detectives have never been able to conclusively prove that McDermott was indeed hiding out somewhere, although there have been a few spottings of him in Mexico, per The New York Post:

A private eye alleged in 2010 that he’d tracked down the cameraman living on a boat off the coast of Acapulco — and that he just wanted to be left alone. That claim was never substantiated.

There were also rumours that he was dating a German woman, who he had allegedly been seen with.

Image: Getty Images

The Daily Mail reported that McDermott was ordered to pay $8 000 in backdated child support for his son with Nipar, and had also filed for bankruptcy with debts of more than $30 000.

Of course, to some people, that adds weight to the theory that he faked his death to escape and start anew.

Even though Newton-John put the tragedy behind her to get on with life, marrying John Easterling after meeting him at an Inca ritual in Peru in 2008, she still referenced McDermott from time to time:

“He was lost at sea, and nobody really knows what happened,” Newton-John told Australia’s “60 Minutes” in 2016.

“It’s human to wonder. But you know, those are the things in life you have to accept and let go. Because whenever you go through difficult times, there’s always those concerns.”

In 2009, she also remarked how “there will always be a question mark”, adding that she doesn’t think she will ever really be at peace with the situation.

Newton-John “passed away peacefully” surrounded by family and friends, according to a statement from Easterling.

[sources:nypost&9honeycelebrity&dailymail]