Yacht Captain Investigated For Deadly Shipwreck That Killed British Tycoon Mike Lynch And His Teen Daughter
After a luxury yacht sank last Monday after its mast, one of the world's tallest, broke in half during a severe storm and wrecked, the captain is now under investigation.
A dozen passengers and 10 crew members climbed on board the super yacht, the Bayesian, to celebrate the success of Mike Lynch, a British technology entrepreneur who co-founded Autonomy Corporation, Invoke Capital and Darktrace. He had been acquitted of fraud and conspiracy two months prior.
During the storm in Sicily, six people died on August 19 after the boat capsized, according to 'CNN.'
The ship's captain, James Cutfield, is currently being investigated by authorities for both negligent shipwreck and multiple accounts of negligent homicide. This is being dug into due to the suspicious timeline of the events, per 'PEOPLE.'
As authorities investigated, they found that the first distress call was not sent out by Cutfield until 32 minutes after the ship began to show signs of sinking. This came up when Cutfield, 51, was questioned for two hours on Sunday.
During this conversation, questions were also asked regarding the position of the yacht's keel and the opening of a hatch on the ship. He was told that he was welcome to hire a defense lawyer before autopsies were performed on the bodies of those who were found dead following the shipwreck.
While the captain has been placed under criminal investigation, an Italian criminal lawyer has attested that this does not necessarily mean that the party is guilty. He shared with the outlet that it "does not imply guilt (innocent until proven guilty) and does not automatically mean charges will be brought against the person. It does mean that the people under investigation are able to appoint their own medical expert to the autopsies that are taking place their week, a very useful defense measure if they are later formally charged at a later date."
After retrieving six bodies from the wreck over the past four days, including the body of Mike Lynch, who was identified on Thursday, the seventh body, 18-year-old Hannah Lynch was retrieved Friday. Per 'CNN,' the wreck was located 50 meters underwater. Divers had approximately 12 minutes to reach the site and explore its cabins before having to resurface.
This fall, Hannah Lynch was set to start studying English literature at the University of Oxford.
"The love Hannah had for everything she held dear was passionate and pure. She had a warm and beautiful soul. Being with Hannah made me feel whole and happy," Katya Lewis, Lynch's friend, said. "She is the most special friend anyone could ask for and I will always love Hannah."
Captain Cutfield and 14 others survived the sinking, including Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares.
