Captain of sunken Bayesian superyacht to be questioned by prosecutors

27 August 2024, 13:41

The captain of the Bayesian superyacht will face his first round of questioning on Tuesday as prosecutors consider placing him under investigation for manslaughter.

James Cutfield, 51, was the captain of the yacht that sunk off the coast of Sicily last week, killing seven people including British tech tycoon Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter.

Of the 22 passengers and crew aboard the boat, 15 were rescued, including Mr Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares.

One of two lawyers appointed to represent Cutfield, Aldo Mordiglia, said: “He is feeling the terrible effects of this tragedy but wants to co-operate.”

“He is free to go but is staying in Sicily to co-operate. I hope he can go home as soon as possible,” Mordiglia added, speaking to The Times.

Cutfiled is being investigated for possible manslaughter and culpable shipwreck over the incident, according to Italian media reports.

However, reports in Italy say this investigation does not imply the New Zealand-born captain is guilty.

Three other crew members are set to be confirmed as under investigation, Italian daily newspaper La Repubblica claimed today.

These include the Dutch second-in-command Tijs Koopmans, the British engineer Tim Parker Eaton and the British crew member Matthew Griffith.

Griffith was reportedly on duty at around 3:50am on the night the Bayesian sank.

Chief prosecutor Ambrogio Cartosio confirmed on Saturday that a manslaughter investigation into the sinking had been launched, but did not give any names.

The boat trip was a celebration of Mr Lynch's acquittal in a fraud case in the US. The businessman, who founded the software giant Autonomy in 1996, was cleared in June of carrying out a massive fraud relating to its 11 billion US dollar (£8.64 billion) sale to US company Hewlett Packard.

A decision on whether to raise the sunken yacht from the seabed is "not on the agenda", but will be in the future, a spokesman from the Italian Coastguard has said.

This comes amid reports Mike Lynch 'held concerns about the killer nurse Lucy Letby's conviction' before he died aboard his £30m superyacht last week, a former Tory minister has said.

Former Brexit secretary David Davis said that the late billionaire yacht owner was considering funding a British "Innocence Project" to look at the baby killer's case.

Letby, 34, was found guilty at Manchester Crown Court for murdering seven babies and the attempted murder of seven others at the Countess of Chester Hospital's neo-natal unit between June 2015 and June 2016.

She has received 15 whole life orders following her convictions at Manchester Crown Court.

Mr Davis said Mr Lynch believed the prosecution case against Letby was weak in an interview with the Sunday Times.

Writing in the newspaper, the Tory bigwig said: "He raised the case of the Lucy Letby trial as one that had already caught his attention.

"Mike was a world-class expert on probability theory, and saw straight through the statistical weaknesses that underpinned the Letby prosecution."

Paying tribute to the late Mr Lynch, Mr Davis said: "The tragic death of Mike Lynch marks the end of an incredible life and the loss of a man whose name became synonymous with battling the injustices of the UK-US extradition treaty."