A rescue ship of the Italian Legion Vigili del Fuoco. Firefighters work near Porticello, near Palermo, a day after the British-flagged luxury yacht Bayes sank on August 20, 2024.
Alberto Pizzoli | AFP | Getty Images
Professional divers resumed their search on Wednesday for six passengers still missing after a superyacht sank in a storm in the early hours of Monday morning, killing one person.
Reported missing were British technology entrepreneur Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah; Morgan Stanley International Chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife, charity trustee Judy Bloomer (Judy Bloomer); and Clifford Chance attorney Chris Morvillo and his wife, jewelry designer Neda Morvillo.
The Italian Coast Guard confirmed to Sky News on Tuesday that the man who died in the incident was Recaldo Thomas, a chef from Antigua, Canada.
According to witnesses and survivors, the ship was violently rocked by a storm while anchored near the port of Porticello, Sicily, around 4 a.m. local time on Monday. The boat capsized and sank quickly.
Less than three months ago, Lynch was acquitted by a U.S. court of 15 conspiracy and wire fraud charges related to the 2011 sale of his software company Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard. Artificially inflating company value.
Mike Lynch, former CEO of Hewlett Packard Enterprise's autonomous division, speaks at a conference on Thursday, April 25, 2013.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
The trip, aboard the British-flagged luxury yacht Bayes, was thought to mark the celebrations for Lynch's acquittal. Movillo represented Lynch in the case, while Bloomer, who holds a non-executive role as chairman of Morgan Stanley's European arm, testified for the defense.
Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares, was on the boat and was rescued along with 14 other people, including a one-year-old baby and his parents.
The rescue team reported that it was difficult for the rescue team to approach the sunken ship, which was located at a depth of about 50 meters. Divers said the ship appeared to be intact, but access was blocked by narrow access points, thick glass windows and a series of objects and cables.
On Tuesday, emergency services said fire department divers were examining the wreck and had gained access to some rooms beneath the control panels. However, police added that access to the cabin remained difficult and the presence of the missing person could not be verified.
This photo obtained from social media shows the Bayes, a 56-meter-long sailing ship, in Santa Flavia, Italy, on August 18, 2024, and later near Palermo, the capital of Sicily. sink.
Bay of San Nicolicchia | Fabio LaBianca | Fabio LaBianca via Reuters
In a separate incident on Saturday, Stephen Chamberlain, a co-defendant in Lynch's trial and a former vice president of finance at Autonomy, was hit and killed by a car while jogging in Cambridgeshire, England, Chamberlain's lawyers said. told Reuters.