In addition to Captain James Cutfield, who is being investigated for manslaughter, other crew members have also been questioned by the Termini Imerese prosecutor’s office and could be investigated. The shipwreck left seven people dead.
ADVERTISEMENTThe investigation continues into the luxury superyacht, which sank last Monday off the coast of Porticello, in the Palermo region of Sicily.
Investigators are investigating the possibility of human error. The captain of the sailboat, James Cutfield, is being investigated for involuntary manslaughter, the Other crew members were also questioned by the courts. and it is not excluded that they too could be the subject of an investigation.
The official registration in the suspects’ register is necessary to allow the public prosecutor of Termini Imerese to order autopsies on the bodies of the seven victims. It guarantees the defense the right to appoint consultants to participate in the examinations carried out by experts from the Institute of Forensic Medicine of the Palermo Polyclinic, as soon as the magistrates have given the green light.
The death toll from the sinking was seven: six passengers, including tech mogul Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah, and chef Thomas Recaldo, who was part of the crew. However, there were 15 survivors, including crew members and passengers. Among them was Angela Barcares, Lynch’s widow and owner of the company to which the yacht is registered.
Days of interrogation to shed light on the case
Sunday, The magistrates questioned all the crew members with the help of an interpreter. Hundreds of pages of minutes in English must be translated into Italian and must reach the Prime Minister within thirty days.
James Cutfield to be heard for the third time by investigators on Tuesday afternoon at the Domina Zagarella Hotel in Santa Flavia, Palermo, where the crew members were staying after the tragedy.
The Bayesian’s commander and first officer will have to wait a few more days before they can leave, however, as they may be questioned again to provide more details on the matter.
Cutfield, who was investigated by the Termini Imerese public prosecutor’s office for manslaughterchose to be defended by two renowned lawyers: Giovanni Rizzuti from Palermo and Aldo Mordiglia from Genoa.
“James Cutfield is under severe strain from this whole affair, but he is determined to defend himself against the charges brought against him by the prosecution.”Rizzuti said. The strategy that the captain’s lawyers could adopt could be to not have him answer questions from prosecutors, since their client is not yet aware of the results of the investigations carried out so far by the public prosecutor.
James Cutfield, a 50-year-old New Zealander from Auckland who has made a career as an experienced captain with a passion for the Mediterranean, plans to return to Majorca to be with his family as soon as possible.
How is it possible that a sailing ship like the Bayesian sank?
The testimony of Cutfield and his deputy, Koopmans, is essential to clarifying what exactly happened and whether mistakes were made by the crew, who would have been surprised bya storm.
Many questions remain: why did the yacht remain anchored when bad weather was forecast? Were the hatches open and did they take on water? Why were the passengers not warned in time?
How is it then that a 56-metre-long sailboat with a 75-metre-high mast, the tallest in the world, a real jewel of nautical technologysank in a few seconds?
One of the first hypotheses of civil protection officials was that the sailboat could have been hit by what is called a waterspout or a ” downburst “, a localized and powerful wind that spreads quickly. Both phenomena would have caused the rapid and unexpected sinking of the sailboat.
However, the main question investigators are focusing on is how a sailboat considered “unsinkable” by Perini Navi, the Italian shipyard that built it in 2008, was the only one of all the boats anchored off Porticello to have collapsed.
Divers work to prevent fuel spills
Coast Guard divers re-inspected the sailboat at the prosecutor’s request.
In addition to filming every detail of the wreck that could explain the sinking, they also monitored the watertightness of the tanks, where they still 18 000 litresof fuel.
There are currently no oil leaks.
“There is an environmental bomb at the bottom of our sea”say the fishermen. “We are all a little worried”helps the mayor of Santa Flavia, Giuseppe D’Agostino.
Camper & Nicholsons, the Bayesian shipping company, is also working on the plan to salvage the wreck, which lies on its right side at a depth of 49 metres. The priority would be to empty the tank and then secure the boat for removal.
