Bodies of Mike Lynch and daughter Hannah flown back to families after Bayesian superyacht sinking
Italian media reports the bodies have been returned to their families via private jet
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The bodies of those who died after the billionaire Mike Lynch’s Bayesian superyacht sunk off the coast of Sicily have been flown back to their families by private jet.
Italian publication Giornale di Sicilia reported post-mortem examinations were completed at a Palermo hospital and the bodies have now been returned.
Fifteen of the 22 passengers and crew survived the incident by clambering onto an inflatable liferaft.
But the bodies of Mr Lynch, his 18-year-old daughter Hannah and four other people were found by divers on board. Post-mortem examinations suggest they had been trapped in a room below deck.
Jonathan Bloomer, the international chairman of Morgan Stanley Bank; his wife Judith, a psychotherapist; Christopher Morvillo, a US lawyer; and his wife Neda, a jewellery designer, also died in the sinking.
The body of the yacht’s chef, Recaldo Thomas, was also recovered floating near the wreckage.
The Bayesian was hit by a suspected “downburst” of strong wind early on 19 August. The 56m-long, £30 million yacht drifted for about 400 metres from its anchorage near the fishing port of Porticello before sinking.
It was also reported Italian Navy divers have recovered video surveillance equipment from the wreckage of the Bayesian superyacht that could explain how it sank.
Several highly specialised divers from the Italian navy’s special forces Comsubin unit are now combing the wreckage, which is around 50 metres underwater, on behalf of prosecutors investigating the sinking.
They recovered parts of the deck, computer material, video surveillance systems, hard drives and various other equipment on Thursday.
The electronics removed from the yacht will now be sent to a laboratory outside Italy to deduce whether they are still readable after sitting for weeks underwater.
A prosecutor in Termini Imerese in Sicily has also placed the captain of the yacht and two British crew members under investigation. This does not necessarily mean charges will follow.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments