Retirement

Dele suddenly retired from the NBA before the start of the 1999–2000 season at age 30, when he was still in the prime of his career. He had been the Pistons' highest-paid player, but had strained relationships with the organization and decided to walk away from the remaining five years and US$36.45 million on his contract rather than be traded.^[11] It has also been theorized he had never been especially passionate about playing basketball and felt he had earned enough money to allow him to walk away from the pro game and lifestyle.^[3]

Disappearance in the South Pacific

On July 6, 2002, Dele and his girlfriend, Serena Karlan, along with skipper Bertrand Saldo, sailed from Tahiti on Dele's catamaran, the Hakuna Matata.^[4] Dele's brother, Miles Dabord (born Kevin Williams), was the only person involved in the voyage who was seen or heard from after July 8, 2002, when the last of four satellite phone calls from the voyage was made.^[4] Dele and Karlan had previously kept regular contact with their banks and family members. On July 20, Dabord brought the boat into Tahiti; he was alone aboard the vessel.^[13]

On September 6, 2002, police used a sting operation organized by Dele's family and friends to detain Dabord in Phoenix. Dabord had forged Dele's signature in order to open mailboxes in his name,^[14] and to buy US$152,000 worth of gold under his brother's name, using Dele's passport as identification.^[15] Mexican police later found that Dabord had been staying at a hotel in Tijuana, Mexico. Two days before, the Hakuna Matata, which had been registered in Tahiti under another name, was found off the coast of Tahiti with its name plate removed and some possible bullet holes patched. About the same time, Dabord phoned his mother, Patricia Phillips, telling her that he would never hurt Dele and that he could not survive in prison.^[16]

The FBI and French authorities became involved in the investigation, found that Dabord bought about $200 of weights and was suspected of using them to weigh down the bodies,^[14] and concluded that Dele, Karlan and Saldo were probably murdered and then thrown overboard by Dabord, the weights with other evidence suggesting that Dabord had planned the murders.^[14] Given that the bodies were likely dumped in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, it would be highly unlikely that the three would ever be found.^[3][15]

Dabord, the only first-person source of information regarding the case, intentionally overdosed on insulin and slipped into a coma. On September 27, 2002, Dabord died in a California hospital. In his account of events, Dabord said he and his brother had fought, and that Karlan had been accidentally hit and died when her head struck part of the boat. When Saldo wanted to report her death, a panicked Dele killed him; Dabord then shot his brother in self-defense, threw the bodies overboard and subsequently fled back to the U.S.^[4] Special Agent John Steiner, the FBI supervisor on the case, related that the forensic team examining the boat had not found any evidence to support Dabord's story and that "There's just no way it could have happened like that."^[14] It is not conclusively known if Dabord's story is true, but the story would not explain why Dabord bought weights, why he allegedly threw all three bodies overboard, why there were patched holes conforming with bullets holes in the boat, why he used his brother’s identity, and why he subsequently purposely overdosed on insulin instead of explaining to authorities what had happened, if the story was true. After Dabord's death, officials did not expect to find much more regarding the case. A memorial service was then held for both Dele and Dabord.

The brothers were frequently at odds with each other. A crew member had left the boat because he found the brothers’ fighting unbearable.^[14] After Dabord's death, his lawyer and lifelong friend, Paul White, was questioned regarding Dabord but was somewhat evasive and gave little information about what happened.^[15]