OAN Staff Abril Elfi
12:37 PM – Monday, August 26, 2024
Italian prosecutors are investigating the captain of the superyacht that capsized last week killing British tech magnate Mike Lynch and six others.
According to Italian media reports, prosecutors are starting an investigation into 51-year-old James Cutfield that could lead to manslaughter charges.
However, being placed under investigation in Italy does not imply guilt and does not mean formal charges will necessarily follow.
La Repubblica reported that magistrates had spoken to Cutfield on Sunday for the second time that week and questioned him for over two hours.
It was also reported that prosecutors might also investigate one of the surviving crewmates.
On Monday, August 19th, a storm struck the 184-foot superyacht, known as the Bayesian, just minutes before it capsized and sank while anchored off the coast of northern Sicily, carrying 22 people.
The Bayesian was owned by Lynch’s wife’s company, who was one of the 15 survivors.
Ambrogio Cartosio, the head of the public prosecutor’s office in Termini Imerese, released a statement on Saturday saying that although a sudden meteorological event had struck the yacht, it was possible that multiple manslaughter and causing a shipwreck through negligence were committed.
A captain is fully responsible for the ship, crew, and everyone on board under maritime law.
The superyacht’s designer said in interviews that he believes the incident could have been caused by human error.
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