The security ministry said the bodies of one adult and one child were found on Sunday, but said the bodies had not yet been identified.
SAN JOSE COSTA RICO, Oaxaca — Costa Rican authorities have recovered two bodies as they search for six people, including the German businessman behind Gold’s Gym, who went missing when their small plane disappeared from radar near the Caribbean coast .
The Ministry of Security reported that the bodies of one adult and one child were found, but they have not yet been identified.
Searchers also found backpacks and bags, as well as fragments of the plane.
All five passengers are believed to be German nationals, Security Minister Jorge Torres said. The pilot of the plane was Swiss.
Costa Rican authorities said pieces of a twin-engine turboprop plane were found in the water on Saturday after the flight went missing on Friday.
In the flight plan of the small plane, Rainer Schaller was listed as a passenger. The man with the same name runs international chains of fitness and gyms, including Gold’s Gym and McFit. At least one other person on the plane appeared to be a relative of Schaller, but that relationship was not immediately confirmed by authorities.
Searchers are focused on a site about 17 miles (28 kilometers) up the coast from Limon Airport.
The plane was an Italian-made nine-seater Piaggio P180 Avanti, known for its distinctive profile. He disappeared from the radar while heading to Limon, a resort town on the coast.
The Minister of Security reported that the flight took off from Mexico.
“Around six o’clock in the afternoon, we received a warning about a flight coming from Mexico to Limon airport with five German passengers on board,” Torres said. The search began immediately, but was temporarily suspended due to bad weather.
Rainer Schaller is listed as “Founder, Owner and CEO of RSG Group”, a conglomerate of 21 fitness, lifestyle and fashion brands that operates in 48 countries and employs 41,000 directly or through franchises.
RSG Group did not respond to requests for comment on whether Schaller was on board the plane.
Schaller was in the news in 2010 for his role as the organizer of the Berlin Love Parade techno festival. As a result of the stampede at the event, 21 people died and more than 500 were injured. At the time, authorities said Schaler’s security had failed to stop the flow of people into the tunnel when the situation was already tense at the entrance to the festival grounds.
Schaller has fended off allegations of wrongdoing, noting that his security concept has received official approval from the city.
