by Ayfer Selamoğlu

The expected happened: The Italian Prosecutor’s Office took action. Prosecutor Ambrogio Cartosio announced that an “involuntary manslaughter investigation” has been launched regarding the superyacht accident off the coast of Sicily, which caused the death of 7 people, including the CEOs and financial managers of well-known companies.

The story of the Bayesian yacht that sank in Sicily is reminiscent of the Titanic. The passengers’ identities, luxurious lives, comfort, and tragic endings are common to both. But there is a difference between them: mystery!

Let’s remember this journey and its passengers that ended in disaster:

A group of businessmen and financial executives set off on a trip from Rotterdam with their families on a luxury yacht with a comfort, lifestyle and tragic ending reminiscent of the Titanic. Target: Southern coast of Italy.

The superyacht Bayesian they were travelling in was built at the Perini Navi shipyards that cater to billionaires. It looked magnificent, with a length of 56 meters and a mast of 75 meters. Like the Titanic, it was produced with the motto “impossible to sink” and was equipped with the latest technology. So it was guaranteed and intelligent                                                                                                       ***

Bayesian continued its journey by setting sails, stopping by the bays, and reaching the Aeolian islands north of Sicily. And anchored in Porticello, a small fishing port between Palermo and Cefalu. Passengers enjoyed the tranquil bays and beaches with natural beauties dancing with the pastel colours of Italy. They swam with the fish in their transparent sea. They enjoyed the luxurious and sumptuous life accompanied by Italian cuisine and music. When exhausted from happiness, they went to their cameras below deck. They would rest and continue their dream life the next day.                                                                                                                     ***

While deep in sleep, the storm that came at 3:50 in the morning woke them all up to the reality of nature. While they were panicking to escape from the cabins, the bright boat was moving faster than them. The boat’s anchor is loosened in nine minutes. It starts to take in water in the 10th minute. At the end of the fifteenth minute, it was lying on its side with its nose down, and at the 16th minute, it was sinking into the water. With its dazzling design, comfort and technology, the enemy-destroying boat disappeared within a minute.

It was later reported that the luxury boat Bayesian sank off the coast of Sicily on August 19 due to bad weather conditions. When the storm’s water hoses hit the boat, the ship’s mast broke, and the yacht lost its balance and sank into the waves.

                                                                    ***

In the total of 16 minutes between the outbreak of the storm and the sinking of the ship, 11 of the twelve personnel saved their lives, while half of the ten passengers died.

Identity of the dead?

The first passenger whose body was found: Mike Lynch, owner of the boat. He passed away together with his daughter Hannah. His wife survived. It is known that Lync, known as the British Bill Gates, works closely with various intelligence companies and is the owner of an artificial intelligence software company called Darktrace. He was acquitted years later of a “fraud” case filed by Hewlett Packard (HP). Lync attributed this result to having power and money. In the early 2010s, Lynch sold another company, Autonomy, to HP, which provides cyber security for Israel’s control of the Palestinian occupation, by inflating its value. Going after Lynch, HP filed a fraud case in San Francisco and ensured the extradition of British Bill Gates from London to the USA.

Lynch was acquitted in this case last June after spending ten years under house arrest in the United States. He had organised this trip to Sicily with his friends to celebrate his freedom.

Chris Morvillo, the attorney representing Lynch in the case, was also on the trip. His name, along with his wife Nada, was on the list of those who lost their lives.

Jonathan Bloomer, CEO of Morgan Stanley Bank, testified on Lynch’s behalf and was also on the boat. He also died along with his wife.

There were miles between them, but a mysterious accident happened in England precisely 24 hours before Bayesian’s tragic end.

Stephen Chamberlain, one of the Darktrace executives who was tried in the HP case, died after being hit by a car near his home in England…

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Like the great Titanic captain who was indifferent to the warning of glaciers, Bayesian’s captain, James Culfiled, did not consider the warnings given by meteorology. In this case, will the responsibility for the historic yacht disaster fall on 51-year-old New Zealand captain James Caulfield? Italian prosecutors explained why those who lost their lives were only passengers; It explores how almost the entire crew survived. The tragic story of Bayesian, which sank into dark waters and became even more interesting with the identities and relationships of the passengers, raises more water.