Hannah Lynch, the 18-year-old daughter of tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch, was found alone in her own cabin 50 metres below the surface of the Mediterranean after the yacht she was on sank, rescue workers have said.
Prosecutors in Italy have launched an official investigation into the captain of the £30million Bayesian superyacht which sank off Sicily last week, killing British tech billionaire Mike Lynch, his daughter and five others.
Hundreds of people in the Sicilian fishing community of Porticello, held a poignant candle-lit vigil for the victims last night, as a former marine who guarded Mr Lynch while he was under house arrest said the experience was 'life-changing'. British tech tycoon Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah both died in the Bayesian tragedy when the superyacht sank off the coast of Sicily
Prosecutors in Italy have previously questioned Cutfield, who they said had been 'extremely cooperative'. Other Bayesian crew members have remained in Italy voluntarily to assist the investigation. He said there were 'behaviours that were not perfectly in order with regard to the responsibility everybody had', before adding: 'There could be in fact the question of homicide. But this is the beginning of the inquiry, we cannot exclude anything at all.'
'They aren't your friends, they're a client and the relationship is strictly professional. But with Mike, that didn't fly with him and for me that rule quickly dissolved.' Italian prosecutors held a press conference on Saturday where it was revealed the victims were unable to escape as they had been asleep during the storm Search vessels returning to shore on Friday after Hannah Lynch's body was discovered
Who died in the Sicily yacht disaster? Advertisement The coastguard says no tornado warning had been issued that night, contrary to previous reports, and the ship's captain Mr Cutfield reportedly told Italian newspaper La Repubblica of the sudden weather change: 'We didn't see it coming.' He added: 'We will establish each element's responsibility - that will be done by the inquiry, so we can't do that prematurely.
He added that it would be 'painful' if, theoretically, 'this tragedy, this terrible tragedy, was caused by behaviours that were not perfectly in order with regard to the responsibility that everybody had to have the ship.' The disaster killed six passengers and one member of crew. Among the survivors are six other passengers and nine members of the crew, including Mr Cutfield, and the first officer.
The yacht is believed to have sunk at the stern after being upset by a downburst that spread out with force, coming to rest on its right-hand side as it hit the sea bed. Rescue chiefs said it was apparent to divers that victims had tried to seek shelter in one side of the upturned boat, where there may have been air bubbles, as it sank.
'There were six cabins: three on the left-hand side and three on the right-hand side. We found them on the highest part of the ship going towards the surface.' Rear Admiral Raffaele Macauda, maritime director of western Sicily , suggested there was a desire to raise the wreck of the Bayesian from the sea bed
The time taken by rescue services to reach the wreck will also form part of the investigation - though authorities said today the sinking had been extremely rapid. He added: 'Generally a prosecutor is never satisfied to give this information at this stage, precisely because developments could change. However, the press conference was staged because of the major international interest in the disaster - and because of the high-profile identities of the victims.
The body of Canadian-Antiguan national Recaldo Thomas, who was working as a chef on the superyacht, was recovered at the scene of the sinking on Monday. 'Over four days to have obtained the result we have obtained? Let's say that represents how professional these divers were,' he said. He later added: 'What of course we wanted to do is save human lives at sea. That's why we carried on with the search from the surface. We were still hoping to find somebody alive.' Divers heading into the water on August 23 to find Hannah Lynch's body in a handout picture from the Italian coastguard
Read More Will Bayesian be lifted off the seabed as part of manslaughter probe? Salvage experts say £13million operation could take six to eight weeks and will involve cranes and up to 40 divers - as captain and crew face key questions over sinking 'Their one request now is that their privacy be respected at this time of unspeakable grief.'Hannah's sister Esme paid her own tribute, saying: 'Hannah often burst into my bedroom and lay down with me.
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