Italy Opens Criminal Investigation Into Superyacht Sinking

Rescue personnel operate on boats on the sea near the area where a luxury yacht sank off the coast of Porticello, near Palermo, Sicily, on Aug. 20, 2024. Guglielmo Mangiapane/Reuters

Italian authorities have announced that a manslaughter investigation has been launched into the deaths of seven people in connection with the sinking of the Bayesian superyacht off the coast of Sicily.

Ambrogio Cartosio, a government prosecutor in the Italian town of Termini Imerese, said in an Aug. 24 press conference that his office has opened an initial investigation into manslaughter.

“It is probable that offenses were committed, that it could be a case of manslaughter, but we can only establish that if you give us the time to investigate,” he said, noting that no suspects have been identified yet.

The bodies of a British tech tycoon, a Morgan Stanley executive, and five others, including a teenager, have been recovered following the sinking of the yacht on Aug. 19 after it capsized in a storm.

The investigation will seek to determine how such a huge vessel, deemed “unsinkable” by its manufacturer, sank within sight of the shore in about 15 minutes.

Giovanni Costantino, CEO of The Italian Sea Group, the company that owns superyacht builder Perini Navi, told Sky News that the boats’ structure and keel makes them “unsinkable bodies.”

“This incident sounds like an unbelievable story, both technically and as a fact,” Costantino told the outlet.

The CEO said in an interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera that an “endless chain of errors” led to the Bayesian’s sinking.

Cartosio said at an Aug. 24 press conference that investigators will consider all possible causes of the tragedy.

“We are only in the initial phase of the investigation. We can’t exclude any sort of development at present,” the prosecutor said.

What’s Known So Far?

The Bayesian was hit by a severe storm, possibly including a waterspout, at about 5 a.m. on Aug. 19 near Palermo, Sicily. The yacht capsized and sank within 16 minutes.

There were 22 people on board, including 12 passengers and a crew of 10. Notable passengers included Mike Lynch, founder of Autonomy, his wife, Angela Bacares, who was the yacht’s legal owner, and their 18-year-old daughter, Hannah Lynch. Lynch was celebrating his acquittal in a U.S. fraud case.

Lynch, several friends and colleagues, and the yacht’s chef died in the incident. Lynch’s wife and 14 others, including a 1-year-old child, were rescued. Survivors managed to escape to a lifeboat, but some were trapped inside as the yacht sank.

The body of the last missing person was found on Aug. 23 and has not yet been identified, but Hannah Lynch is reportedly unaccounted for.

Some experts have suggested that the yacht could have taken on a large amount of water, possibly through broken portholes or an open hatch.

Built in 2008 by Perini Navi, the Bayesian had undergone two refits, the last in 2020, but not by its original builders.

Chris Summers contributed to this report.