RedactedNarrative: On April 15, 2018 at 12:12 PM I (Ofc.) received a call from the Natural Resources Police (NRP) communications center of a vessel overturned in the area of red buoy 46 on the Potomac River near Leesylvania State Park, on the Virginia side.
  I advised dispatch that I was in route to Smallwood State Park, where marked patrol boat NRP 844 was stationed.  I got underway on NRP 844 at 12:20 PM and headed to the area of the overturned vessel. The weather was overcast with showers, air temperature of 46 degrees, and sustained winds East Northeast of 10 knots with gusts of 15-20 knots. The water conditions were rough.   Waves were at 3-4 feet. Once I started toward the last known location of the vessel and was outside of Mattawoman Creek on the Potomac, NRP 844 would take water over the bow (21’ Boston Whaler) at idle speed.  
  While underway I received more information from dispatch that the vessel had two occupants on board, both seen jumping overboard after their vessel started taking on water. At 12:35 PM, I was on scene. Charles County Fire Boat 8 had located the vessel, and it was overturned at that time. The vessel’s location was approximately 100 yards North of the Powerlines that cross over the Potomac River, about one nautical mile South of Cockpit Point on the Virginia side. The coordinates of the vessel’s location when I first arrived on scene were N 38? 32.577 by W 077? 16.089. The vessel, a 1987 15’ Jason with blue over gray coloring, bearing Virginia registration 2557 AM, was adrift at that time and Charles County Fire Boat 8 was able to upright the vessel briefly to attach an anchor to try and secure its location.  
  The anchor did not catch and due to the rough water conditions the vessel overturned once again.  Responding fire and rescue boats from Virginia and Maryland along with the United States Coast Guard set up a South to North grid search of the waters from where the vessel overturned north to the Commercial fuel pier off of Cockpit Point, Va.  After the grid search was conducted with negative results by all 8 total rescue boats, shoreline scans of the area were continued and more information was gathered. Information was received that the push boat, Amberjack, which was moored up on the end of the commercial fuel pier, was the original caller. After making face to face contact with the original eyewitness, I was able to gather more information about the subjects that went into the water. The deckhand stated that approximately 75 yards south of the end of the pier, he saw the subjects in the vessel. They were waving and yelling at the deckhand in Spanish. 
  
  He watched one subject jump overboard clinging to a life vest and he saw the other subject jump into the water without any type of flotation device. The deckhand went to get his supervisor and when he came back he could no longer see the subjects. With information gathered and a strong last known location, Charles County Dive team was able to use their side scan sonar and got two possible marks on the bottom of the river in about 24’ of water. The divers dove on the first mark and were able to recover one subject at 3:59 PM. The body was transported back to Smallwood State Park. The second body was recovered by the divers around 6:00 PM and was also taken to Smallwood State Park. Once the subjects were recovered, I was ordered to tow the vessel back to Leeslyvania State Park, where the subject’s vehicle and trailer were located. 
  
  The vessel was overturned and was unable to safely be turned upright because of the sea conditions. I began to tow the vessel at a speed of about 2 knots. Any faster and the vessel would dive completely under water.  At approximately 6:45 PM, we were met by Sea Tow in the area just outside of Leeslyvania State Park. Sea tow was able to upright the vessel and they towed it back to the boat ramp at Leeslyvania State Park. Once secured at the boat ramp on the floating pier, Sea tow captain was able to put a bilge pump in the boat and keep it afloat while we got the trailer for the vessel in position.  Virginia Park Police Officer was able to cut the lock off of the trailer and connected the trailer to his patrol truck to load the boat on the trailer. The vessel was placed onto the trailer and secured by the trailer’s winch. The trailer was landed and secured to the subjects’ vehicle. The vessel’s plug was removed to allow the water to drain out. Sea tow was cleared from the scene at approximately 8:00 PM. Off. agreed to stay with the vessel until the investigators arrived.