Captain James Cutfield, 51, is being investigated for manslaughter and the shipwreck, and the yacht’s engineer is also named in the investigation, writes The Sun.
A formal investigation into Mr Cutfield was opened on Monday, and one of his lawyers revealed that the captain had decided not to answer questions from Italian prosecutors on Tuesday.
Mr Cutfield’s lawyer, Giovanni Rizzuti, told the press that he was “extremely exhausted” and had decided to remain silent as the investigation began.
It comes as prosecutors also open an investigation into the yacht’s engineer, Briton Tim Parker Eaton, a judicial source told Reuters today.
It is not clear what specific charges Mr Parker-Eaton, from Clofil, Bedfordshire, faces.
Mr Rizzuti also said Mr Cutfield’s legal team was only formed on Monday, meaning they needed more time to prepare their case before they could comment.
August 19 luxury superyacht Bayesian capsized and sank off the coast of Porticello in Sicily, killing 59-year-old British billionaire tycoon Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah.
Five other people died, including four guests of the Lynch family and Recaldo Thomas, the yacht’s chef.
Mr Cutfield’s other lawyer, Aldo Mordiglia, also revealed that he was too “shocked” to give a proper statement when police began questioning him on Tuesday.
“He’s obviously very shocked and secondly, we lawyers were only appointed yesterday and we have to get information that we don’t have in order to defend him,” Mr Mordiglia told The Times.
He previously told how Mr Cutfield intended to co-operate with investigators, but said he had the right to remain silent under Italian law.
Any statements he made could be used as formal evidence in a potential trial on murder charges.
Mr Cutfield was interviewed at the Palermo hotel where the surviving crew members are believed to have stayed.
It is not clear whether Mr Cutfield, who lives in Mallorca with his wife, will remain in Sicily until the investigation is completed.
He was questioned by the police for several hours after the tragic accident last week. They wondered how the luxury ship sank so quickly.
By the way, Mr. Cutfield’s interviews, which he gave before he was officially named as a participant in the investigation, cannot be used as evidence in court.
The fact that an investigation has been opened in Italy does not mean that he is guilty, nor does it mean that he will face formal charges. According to maritime law, the master is fully responsible for the ship and its crew, as well as for the safety of all persons on board.
None of the remaining eight surviving crew members have yet made any public comments about the disaster. Prosecutors may also open an investigation into a crew member who was on duty during the storm and survived, according to local reports.
Bayesian had 22 people on board, 15 of whom survived.
Witnesses and officials said a swirling cloud of air and water struck the ship’s mast and capsized it.
At a press conference on Saturday, Ambrogio Cartosio said there could have been “behaviour that was not entirely appropriate in terms of everyone’s responsibility”.
He added: “There may indeed be a question of murder. But this is the beginning of the investigation, we absolutely cannot rule anything out.”
He said one of the questions was whether the crew tried to raise the alarm with the passengers before getting into the lifeboat and escaping.
A. Cartosio promised “to find out how much they (crew) knew and to what extent all people (passengers) were warned.”
He said: “We will determine the responsibility of each element (crew). In my opinion, it is likely that crimes were committed – that it could be manslaughter.
Chief prosecutor Raffaele Cammarano said the Italian air force had determined that the boat had sunk due to thunder from a thunderstorm.
He said high winds and a gale warning were in the forecast, but visibility was good and there was no tornado.
He added: “Given the conditions, there was nothing to suggest that there might be an emergency.
“There are ships that can monitor these events and one would assume that the captain took precautions,” he said, adding that there was only one man on duty in the cockpit at the time of the accident.
Authorities now face the difficult task of recovering the wreckage of the yacht from the sea intact so that it can be properly examined.
Seeing pagan „The Sun“ inf.
2024-08-28 20:33:34