Canadian filmmaker Rob Stewart reportedly found dead, U.S. Coast Guard says

UPDATE

The body of acclaimed Canadian filmmaker Rob Stewart has been reportedly found off the coast of Florida, according to a tweet from the U.S. Coast Guard.

Coast Guard officials tweeted Friday evening that the Key Largo Fire Department "reportedly found Stewart at a depth of 220 feet" off the Florida Keys.

The tweet came just a couple of hours after the Coast guard announced they were suspending the search for Stewart at sunset Friday.

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They made the announcement Friday afternoon at a news conference in Islamorada, Fla. Capt. Jeffrey Janszen said the Coast Guard has confidence it has done everything it could do in the search for the 37-year-old.

The search covered more than 5,500 square miles — an area the size of Connecticut, Janszen said. Thirteen volunteer aircraft and 20 volunteer boats were part of the search, along with many volunteer divers. 

Stewart's family was informed of the decision earlier Friday, officials said.

Janszen called the incident a "marine casualty" and added an investigation into what happened is pending.

Missing since Tuesday

The Toronto filmmaker and conservationist went missing Tuesday evening during a dive off the Florida Keys.

A U.S. Coast Guard spokesperson said Stewart was "diving on a wreck off of Islamorada" with three other divers when he disappeared. The three others completed the dive safely.

Stewart resurfaced at the end of the dive, but as the boat was preparing to pick him up, he went back under and was not seen again.

While it wasn't clear what made Stewart go back underwater, his sister, Alexandra Stewart, told CBC Toronto earlier this week that it was a "particularly difficult" dive, going to a depth of nearly 70 metres.

U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Richard Etheridge searches the waters off the Florida Keys for the 37-year-old Stewart. (U.S. Coast Guard Southeast/Twitter)

Award-winning filmmaker

Stewart is best known for his 2006 documentary Sharkwater, an examination of global shark hunting and its impact on the ocean ecosystem. He was active in underwater filming.

Alexandra Stewart said her brother's latest dive was part of work for the film's upcoming sequel, Sharkwater: Extinction.

Sharkwater premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and has since won more than 40 awards at film festivals around the world. 

​Stewart's second film, Revolution, was the highest-grossing Canadian documentary in 2013 and won 19 awards from global film festivals.

Born and raised in Toronto, Stewart studied biology at Western University in London, Ont.

His family has set up a GoFundMe campaign to mobilize resources for the search. As of Friday afternoon, the campaign had raised more than $175,000.

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Canadian filmmaker Rob Stewart reportedly found dead, U.S. Coast Guard says