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Understanding Yacht Co-Ownership: Answers to the 8 most-asked questions.

Whether you want to buy a share of a yacht, sell a share of a yacht, or are completely new to the concept of yacht co-ownership, this article is for you. We’re sharing some of the most popular questions we get from clients, and our answers.

What is yacht co-ownership?

Yacht co-ownership  – also referred to as fractional yacht ownership or shared equity yacht ownership – describes an ownership structure that enables a designated number of co-owners to share all the benefits and costs associated with owning a yacht. 

Why choose co-ownership?

The immediate appeal of co-ownership, as opposed to conventional yacht ownership, is that you only pay for the time you spend on the yacht. If you were to own a yacht outright, you would be paying for the yacht even when it’s simply docked in the marina.

Plus, with shared ownership, your yachting budget can go a much longer way. The more people you have to share the cost with, the bigger your budget and your yacht options will be. Rather than having just one single budget to work within, you’ll have double or triple that depending on how many partners you share the yacht with.

Another major advantage to co-ownership is the hassle-free experience it offers. As part of AvYachts Co-ownership Plan, management and maintenance responsibilities can be taken care of for you. Rather than worry about planning yard times, hiring and managing crew, and the day-to-day challenges of yacht ownership, you’ll be able to spend more time enjoying your yacht and having fun.

How does co-ownership work?

With yacht co-ownership, each owner gets to use the yacht on a fair basis according to how large their share is. There is a round-robin system that rotates the most popular weeks of the year, such as high-season or school holidays, with the flexibility to swap weeks.

What is the right number of co-owners?

There is no one right number of owners. It is dependent on a variety of factors, including the size of the yacht, plus where and how often you plan on using it. Our expert matchmakers will work with you to find just the right ownership structure for you. 

Why do so few companies offer Co-Ownership services?

Co-ownership has long been a part of yachting culture – whether it’s family members buying together, business partners, or even friends. So why is it that so few companies offer co-ownership services? The honest answer is that it requires a lot more effort and dedication to put a shared deal together than a single ownership deal. In some cases, it can be twice to four times the work, so a company/broker needs to be passionate about the concept of finding the right fit for you and be experienced at successful yacht partner matchmaking.

Why consider selling a portion of your yacht?

The demand for yachting is growing.  Every yacht owner has weeks their yacht is sitting empty.  That is never good for the yacht, the crew, or the bottom line.  While some owners open their yacht for charter to defray the cost, another option is to sell ¼ or more of your yacht for a lump sum plus an annual rate for a guaranteed number of weeks a year.  As the seller, you set the rules of ownership.  It is a guaranteed flow of funds and will keep the yacht and crew moving. 

If you are looking to buy a share of a yacht, what factors should you consider when setting a budget?

Owning a yacht is expensive, no matter what your budget is. Here are some questions to consider when setting your budget:

-    Do you want a crew, or are you planning on being the captain and maintaining the yacht?  -      Usage weeks: How many times a year are you going to use the yacht?  -      Number of staterooms: How many people will you be traveling with? -      Destination: Where do you want to go on the yacht? -      Homeport: Where do you want to keep the yacht? -      How long do you want to own the yacht? -      Do you want to handle the maintenance and logistics of owning a yacht?  

Any additional considerations?

At the end of the day, it is not only the purchase price of the yacht that you should keep in mind.  The yearly maintenance and running budget are some of the most important numbers to consider when shopping for a yacht.

 As the expert in helping you buy or sell a share of a yacht, AvYachts matchmakers can connect you with the yachting experience you dream of, at a fraction of the price you imagine. Ready to get started? Contact us today. 

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Everything we know so far about the search for Mike Lynch and the Bayesian superyacht sinking in Sicily

The bayesian sailing boat had 22 people on board, including technology tycoon mike lynch, when it sank in the early hours of monday, article bookmarked.

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The search for British billionaire Mike Lynch and his daughter continues a day after his luxury yacht sank in a tornado off the coast of the Sicilian capital Palermo .

The 50-metre luxury boat, named Bayesian, had 22 people on board when it sank in the early hours of Monday, with four Britons among the seven missing , according to local media.

The yacht sank as a fierce storm battered the area overnight, and was flying a British flag, according to ship-tracking site Marine Traffic.

Salvo Cocina of Sicily ’s civil protection agency said: “They were in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

For updates on this story, follow The Independent’s live blog for the latest coverage

What do we know about the missing people on the yacht?

British technology tycoon Mike Lynch is among six tourists missing, The Independent understands. Mr Lynch, who founded software giant Autonomy in 1996, was made an OBE for services to enterprise in 2006. In June, he was cleared of conducting a massive fraud relating to a $11 billion (£8.64bn) sale to US company Hewlett Packard.

One man has been confirmed dead with photos on Monday showing a body bag being lifted to shore where ambulances were waiting. Multiple agencies are reporting he is the boat’s chef. Four of the missing passengers are British and two are American, according to Italian newspaper la Repubblica.

Have you been affected by this story? Email [email protected]

Mr Lynch had planned the superyacht cruise as a celebration with family, employees and lawyers who supported him during the decade-long trial.

Morgan Stanley International Bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer and Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo are among those missing.

Divers are still searching for the remaining six passengers unaccounted for: Mr Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter, Morgan Stanley International non-executive chairman Jonathan Bloomer, Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo, and their two wives Judy and Neda.

Among the 15 survivors rescued from a lifeboat was Mr Lynch’s wife Angela Bacares. Another survivor, Charlotte Golunski, 35, told Italian journalists how she saved her one-year-old daughter Sofia from drowning.

She told la Repubblica she lost Sofia for “two seconds”, adding: “I held her afloat with all my strength, my arms stretched upwards to keep her from drowning. It was all dark. In the water I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I screamed for help but all I could hear around me was the screams of others.”

According to her LinkedIn profile, Ms Golunski is a partner at Mr Lynch’s firm, called Invoke Capital.

Charlotte, Sofia and Charlotte’s husband, James have now been discharged from hospital.

Ayla Reynold, a Kiwi working at Clifford Chance, also survived the horror with her partner. Her father Lin Ronald confirmed to The Telegraph she had been invited aboard as thanks for assistance in Mr Lynch’s recent court case. He said that his daughter had not given many details about what happened, but said: “there are deaths and she and her partner are alive.”

Where did the yacht sink?

The luxury yacht sunk off the coast of Palermo, Sicily.

The 56-metre-long sailboat sank with 22 people on board shortly before sunrise, the Italian coast guard said in a statement.

“The wind was very strong. Bad weather was expected, but not of this magnitude,” a coast guard official in Palermo told Reuters.

Storms and heavy rainfall have swept down Italy in recent days - with floods and landslides causing major damage in the north of the country - after weeks of scorching heat.

The boat left the Sicilian port of Milazzo on 14 August and was last tracked east of Palermo on Sunday evening, with a navigation status of "at anchor", according to vessel tracking app Vesselfinder.

The Bayesian superyacht

The Bayesian superyacht is 56 metres long, according to VesselFinder.

The superyacht can accommodate up to 12 guests in six suites and is listed for rent for up to 195,000 euros (£166,000) a week. Her registered owner is listed as Revtom Ltd, which is based on the Isle of Man.

Bayesian completed several sailings in recent days, calling at various ports in Sicily.

Formerly known as Salute, or health in Italian, its 75-metre mast is the tallest aluminium mast in the world, Italian shipbuilder Perini said on its website.

Perini constructed the boat in 2008 and it was last refitted in 2020 and was managed by yachting company Camper & Nicholsons.

Camper and Nicholsons International, confirmed to  The Independent  that the Bayesian sailing yacht “encountered severe weather and subsequently sank.”

A statement continued: “There were a total of 12 guests and 10 crew onboard. The Italian Coast Guard is leading search and rescue operations, and has safely recovered 15 individuals. Efforts to locate the seven missing persons continue. Our priority is assisting with the ongoing search and providing all necessary support to the rescued passengers and crew. More information will be provided as it becomes available.”

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How much does it cost to charter a yacht?

There are many things to consider and first time charterers can be left confused, that's why we've created a comprehensive guide to yacht charter prices (with a checklist).

The good news: It’s easy to grasp the basics of yacht charter pricing. And with one of our experts in your corner, we can help you more accurately estimate the cost of your next once-in-a-lifetime vacation.

The cost of a yacht charter is dependent on a number of factors, including the type of yacht, the charter destination, local taxes, and the base cost. (If the yacht has a celebrity owner, well that too, can add to the cost.)

Therefore, yacht charters have a wide range of base prices. That’s why charters can cost from $10,000 per week on smaller sailing yachts and catamarans, up to $150,000+ per week on the most luxurious motor superyachts.

What else can you expect to pay? This overview – a part of our planning resource, the Charter Advice Guide – offers an in-depth look at charter yacht costs.

Yacht Charter Price Structure: “All-Inclusive” vs “Plus Expenses”

In the world of yachting, two types of crewed yacht charters are available to you – “All-Inclusive” and “Plus Expenses” charter experiences. What do these terms mean exactly? Here’s a quick look:

• All-Inclusive Yacht Charters – Some charters (mainly catamaran and monohull charters in the Virgin Islands) offer all-inclusive rates. That means rates are based on the number of guests, and they include all food and drink, water sports, and fuel costs. Dockage and taxes, though, are usually charged separately.
• Plus Expenses Charters – Rates for larger motor yachts do not include running expenses, which must be paid separately. For these luxury charters, the base price is for the yacht only. Additional expenses, i.e. food, bar, fuel, dockage, port taxes, and other expenses, are charged separately. Most frequently, the running expenses are paid by an Advance Provisioning Allowance, or APA, which is typically 35% of the base price; this is an amount that’s paid prior to the charter.

Our chart below offers a quick overview of what’s included in both of these types of charters.

Average Yacht Charter Cost: Base Prices

What can you expect to pay for a catamaran, a sailing vessel, or motored yacht? Here’s a quick overview of the average cost to rent a yacht (not including extra expenses) for the most common types available:

Factors that Affect Yacht Charter Prices

Since charter yachts are privately owned, prices are set by the owner. This can explain, in part, the wide range of differences in price between boats of similar lengths. Yet, several other factors can significantly impact price, including:

• The Yacht – The year the boat was built, the builder, previous owners, and the boat’s selection of water toys can also increase the cost of a yacht. Boats can also develop a reputation, i.e. the largest or most luxurious, or having a famous builder or previous owner. Reputation can also affect pricing.
• Season – Prices typically increase in the high season – i.e. high summer in the Mediterranean or winter in the Caribbean – and decrease in low seasons.
• Destination – Your charter destination also plays a role in charter cost. For example, prices increase in areas without large charter fleets (i.e. the Galapagos), whereas Bahamas yacht charters,   BVI charters , or Mediterranean yacht charter are priced more competitively.

Additional Costs Considerations on Yacht Charter

In addition to the cost associated with running the yacht and provisioning, there are a number of other costs that must be considered. These are the most significant:

Advanced Provisioning Allowance

The APA on Plus Expenses charters equals roughly 35% of the yacht’s base price. This is a fee that’s collected prior to charter, and it’s similar to an expense account the captain can access during the charter. At the end of the charter, you will receive a detailed accounting of your APA account, plus any unused APA funds in cash.

In the case of overages, you may be required to replenish the APA account during the charter. This can be done with cash, although many choose to set up accounts with their charter brokers , which can be accessed if requested by the captain.

Taxes and Value Added Tax (VAT)

Most boats – whether all-inclusive or Plus Expenses – will not include local taxes or a Value Added Tax into their charter rate. The charterer will be responsible for paying those taxes. Taxes range significantly by destination; here’s a look at some of yachting’s most popular destinations:

• The Bahamas – Tax: 4% plus 10% VAT
• BVI – Tax: between $6 and $16 per person per day, depending on the flag of the boat
• Croatia – VAT: 13%
• Florida – Tax: 6% for Broward County, 7% for Miami-Dade County
• France – VAT: 20%, however, 10% can be applied when an itinerary includes International Waters
• Greece – VAT: 12%
• Italy – VAT: 22%, however 6.6% (over 24m) and 8.8% (under 24m) can be applied when an itinerary includes International Waters
• Montenegro – NO VAT
• New England – NO TAX
• Spain – VAT: 21%
• Turkey – NO VAT

Charterers can purchase cancellation and curtailment insurance – which is similar to traveler’s insurance. This insurance can help cover costs if a charterer must cancel or shorten the charter. Charter brokers can help you weigh insurance options, and often offer several different options.

Crew Gratuity

While crew gratuity is certainly not mandatory, it is recommended, particularly if you were truly impressed with your charter experience. In general, crew gratuity is roughly 15-20% of the base charter rate, which is handed to the captain at the conclusion of your charter.

Delivery Fees

While these fees do not apply on most charters, you may be asked to pay delivery costs if you are not chartering in the yacht’s normal cruising ground. In most cases, you will only be required to cover the fuel for the trip.

Call Worldwide Boat today to learn more. Our Charter Specialists are here to assist you with every detail and explain all charter costs. Or read our Charter Advice guide for more information and tips for planning your charter vacation.

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Additional Charter Cost FAQs

What are standard private charter yacht prices?

There are a number of factors that affect charter yacht pricing. However, on average, a week-long private yacht charter costs anywhere from $10,000 on luxurious sailing yachts and catamarans, and up to $150,000 for superyachts.

What affects charter yacht prices?

There are several things that influence how much your yacht charter will cost. The type of vessel, charter destination, length of trip, base cost, time of year, and local taxes all make a difference.

How much does it cost for a crewed vessel?

Charter yacht prices do increase when hiring a crew along with the boat. At Worldwide Boat, we offer two types of crewed charter experiences: all-inclusive and plus expenses. An all-inclusive charter yacht includes accommodation for all guests, food and drink, water sport activities, and fuel costs – dockage fees and taxes are charged separately. A plus expenses experience accounts for just the yacht’s base price. Things like food, drinks, fuel, dockages, taxes, and other expenses are charged separately and are usually estimated to be about 35% of the base price.

What’s included in all-inclusive boat charters?

At Worldwide Boat, your all-inclusive charter experience includes a diligent and friendly crew, water toys, food, drinks, fuel, water and electric services, and occasionally diving experiences.

What are some additional charter boat costs to consider?

After finding a base price you’re comfortable with and evaluating your package, you’ll also want to consider delivery fees, crew gratuity, insurance fees, taxes, and Advanced Provisioning Allowance rates. If you are responsible for these fees, your crew will handle the necessary transactions on your behalf.

What does it cost to rent a 100- foot yacht charter?

This depends on what type of vessel you’re looking at and how long you’ll need it for. The average weekly cost of a 100-foot sailing yacht is between $50,000-100,000. A weekly 80-foot catamaran charter runs around $40,000-100,000, and a week-long 100-foot motor yacht rental is anywhere between $50,000-80,000.

Does the price to rent a yacht change depending on what type of boat it is?

Yes. Worldwide Boat offers sailing yachts, catamarans, and motor yachts. All of these vessels have different capabilities, but there are other factors that determine the price beyond what type of boat you choose. The year the boat was built, owner, availability of water toys, onboard amenities, and the ship’s reputation can all change how much the ship is priced at.

When is the high season for yacht charters?

The price of a yacht fluctuates depending on the season. A Mediterranean yacht charter cost rises in the summer and drops in the winter, whereas Caribbean boat charter prices are high during the winter and lower in the summer months.

How does my destination affect charter yacht cost?

The more remote an area is, the more expensive it will be to charter a yacht there. That’s because prices go up in areas that have fewer boats. If you were to travel somewhere like the Galapagos, which isn’t a typical yacht destination, you’d pay more than you would if you were traveling to the Caribbean.

How much do I tip the crew when reviewing my yacht charter expenses?

It’s not required that you tip your crew, but it is recommended and appreciated. If you had an enjoyable experience it’s considered polite to tip your crew anywhere from 15-20% at the end of your charter.

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Family of Mike Lynch's co-defendant who died after car accident days before yacht sinking pay tribute

Stephen Chamberlain and the tech tycoon had faced charges of fraud and conspiracy but were acquitted by a US jury in June. He was involved in a collision with a car in Cambridgeshire on Saturday.

Business reporter @taaffems

Tuesday 20 August 2024 11:40, UK

The family of Mike Lynch's co-defendant in a recent US fraud trial have paid tribute to a "much-loved husband, father, son" after it was confirmed he died following a road accident that occurred a couple of days before the British tech tycoon went missing.

Stephen Chamberlain, the former vice president of the finance company Autonomy, was hit by a car while out running in Cambridgeshire on Saturday morning, his lawyer said.

Mr Chamberlain had faced the same charges of fraud and conspiracy as his former boss Mr Lynch - one of six people reported missing after a luxury yacht was struck by an unexpectedly violent storm and sank off Sicily early on Monday.

He had been accused of allegedly scheming to inflate the value of Autonomy, then Britain's largest software firm, before it was sold to Hewlett-Packard (HP) in 2011.

In a statement released by Cambridgeshire Constabulary, his family said in a statement: "Steve was a much-loved husband, father, son, brother and friend.

"He was an amazing individual whose only goal in life was to help others in any way possible.

"He made a lasting impression on everyone who had the privilege of knowing him.

"He will be deeply missed but forever in the hearts of his loved ones."

Mr Chamberlain and Mr Lynch were acquitted of all 15 charges by a jury in the fraud case in San Francisco in June.

In a statement on Monday, Mr Chamberlain's lawyer, Gary Lincenberg, who described him as a "dear client and friend", said he had died after being "fatally struck" by a car while out running near Stretham.

At the weekend police in Cambridgeshire appealed for witnesses and information after a man in his 50s, from Longstanton, was taken to hospital with serious injuries.

The force said a blue Vauxhall Corsa was travelling between Stretham and Wicken on the A1123 when it collided with a pedestrian at about 10.10am in Newmarket Road. On Tuesday, it renewed its appeal.

The force added in a statement: "The driver of the car, a 49-year-old woman from Haddenham, remained at the scene and is assisting with enquiries."

Meanwhile, a search for Mr Lynch, 59, is still under way after a UK-flagged superyacht named Bayesian sank .

One person is dead and the British tech billionaire, who owned the 56-metre vessel (183ft), is one of six people missing, including several of others Mr Lynch has worked with.

Mr Lynch's 18-year-old daughter Hannah is among those missing after his yacht sank, local media reports, however his wife Angela Bacares is confirmed to be among the 15 people who were rescued after it capsized at about 4.30am local time (3.30am UK time) on Monday.

Follow live updates: People missing after superyacht sinks

Mr Chamberlain worked as Autonomy's vice president of finance until he left in 2012 to work as chief operating officer for cybersecurity firm Darktrace, a firm founded by Invoke Capital, which itself was owned by Mr Lynch.

Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News

He also volunteered as a finance director for Cambridge United, according to his LinkedIn profile.

The sale of Autonomy was the biggest tech takeover of a FTSE 100 firm at the time - but HP wrote down £5.5bn of the company's value within a year, claiming revenue streams were inflated.

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What we know about Bayesian yacht tragedy as missing six feared dead

The yacht's chef recaldo thomas has been named as the only body so far recovered with uk tech tycoon and his daughter among six others missing, feared dead..

The six people still missing after the British luxury yahct the Bayesian sank off the Sicily coast on Monday are feared dead, rescuers have said.

So far only one body has been recovered, which is believed to belong to Recaldo Thomas, a Canadian-Antiguan chef who was working on the 56m boat, which sank near near Palermo in the early hours of Monday.

British tech tycoon Mike Lynch, 59, and his 18-year-old daughter Hannah are among six people still unaccounted for.

Morgan Stanley International Bank chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his charity trustee wife Judy are also among the missing, as is Clifford Chance lawyer Christopher Morvillo and his wife, Neda, a jewellery designer.

Storms and heavy rains have ravaged Italy in recent days, after weeks of scorching heat warmed the sea temperature to record highs, raising the risk of extreme weather conditions.

The six missing passengers are feared dead, the Italian coastguard said on Tuesday afternoon, as a sailing expert said hatches and doors left open overnight on the superyacht may have caused it to sink.

Read a full breakdown of the key updates or click below to skip to each section

> What happened to the Bayesian?

> Who was on board?

> What is the search latest?

> What we still don't know

> Co-defendant in fraud trial killed in separate tragedy

What happened to the Bayesian?

The British-flagged vessel was carrying 22 people - 12 passengers and 10 crew - when it was hit by a heavy storm that created waterspouts over the water on Monday morning.

It was reportedly anchored to the sea bed near the harbour of the small fishing village of Porticello, to the east of Palermo, when the storm struck and caused the boat to sink at around 5am local time.

Sailing expert Sam Jefferson, editor of magazine Sailing Today, said the vessel’s huge mast is likely to have contributed to the tragedy.

“I would have said that the boat got hit very hard by the wind, it was pinned over on its side," he said. “I imagine all the doors were open because it was hot, so there were enough hatches and doors open that it filled with water very quickly and sank like that."

Fire department diver Marco Tilotta told reporters the vessel appeared to be intact and was lying on its right side. Divers had not ascertained whether the 72-metre-long mast had snapped during the tempest.

Karsten Borner, skipper of a boat that had been moored alongside the Bayesian, said the yacht flipped on its side soon after the storm hit and sank within two minutes, giving those below deck little time to get to safety.

Read more: What we know about the Bayesian superyacht that sank (Sky News)

Who was on board?

Missing or confirmed dead.

Once described as "Britain's Bill Gates", the 59-year-old technology tycoon, born in Ilford, Essex, to Irish parents, founded software giant Autonomy in 1996, later selling it to US company Hewlett Packard for £8.6bn in 2011.

He went on trial in San Francisco over a fraud charges related to the sale, but was found not guilty on all counts. A spokesperson for Lynch has said there was no comment.

Hannah Lynch

Sicily’s civil protection agency told the BBC that Lynch's 18-year-old daughter was also among those missing.

Jonathan Bloomer

Bloomer, 70, chairman of Morgan Stanley Bank International and insurance company Hiscox, is missing along with his wife, Judy, who was called a "brilliant champion for women's health" by gynaecological cancer research charity the Eve Appeal, where she has been a trustee for more than 20 years.

Hiscox group chief executive Aki Hussain confirmed the couple were missing.

“We are deeply shocked and saddened by this tragic event," he said.

“Our thoughts are with all those affected, in particular our chair, Jonathan Bloomer, and his wife Judy, who are among the missing, and with their family as they await further news from this terrible situation.”

Chris Morvillo

A US partner at law firm Clifford Chance, Morvillo worked on the case that saw Lynch cleared of fraud. It is thought the yacht trip was a celebration of Lynch's acquittal. He was on board the yacht with his wife, Neda, an American jewellery designer.

A spokesperson for Clifford Chance confirmed the couple are missing. “We are in shock and deeply saddened by this tragic incident," they said.

“Our thoughts are with our partner, Christopher Morvillo, and his wife, Neda, who are among the missing."

Recaldo Thomas

The body recovered by rescuers on Monday is believed to be that of Recaldo Thomas, a Canadian-Antiguan chef who was working on the ship.

Gareth Williams, a friend of 30 years who grew up with Thomas, told the BBC: "I can talk for everyone that knew him when I say he was a well-loved, kind human being with a calm spirit."

Another friend, Eli Fuller, said he had become an inspiration to young black children who wanted to get into yachting.

"The kids would see all these white people working on yachts. For them to see an Antiguan man travelling all over the world - it was important for our community."

In a Facebook post, Rose Marie, who also works in the yachting industry, said: "Christ I’m going to to miss you so, so very much my dearest friend,my partner in crime.

An honour and a pleasure to have been your friend, it just wasn’t long enough ….we had so much to conquer. Such a very special person for many of us, the laughter, the great kindness the generosity…the love… he had so much to give."

The Survivors

Angela bacares.

The 57-year-old wife of Lynch is reportedly recovering in a wheelchair after injuries she sustained while escaping the yacht, of which she is understood to be the owner.

She told La Repubblica that the couple woke up at 4am when the vessel made a "slight tilt". She reportedly sustained injuries to her feet after walking through broken glass to get off the boat.

Charlotte Golunski

Briton Charlotte Golunski, a partner at Invoke Capital, founded by Lynch, was rescued from the water with her husband James Emsley and their one-year-old daughter, Sofia, whose live she saved.

Golunski said they survived because they were on deck when the yacht started to sink.

She told La Repubblica: "For two seconds I lost my daughter in the sea then quickly hugged her amid the fury of the waves. I held her afloat with all my strength, my arms stretched upwards to keep her from drowning.

“It was all dark. In the water I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I screamed for help but all I could hear around me was the screams of others.”

All three family members were treated in hospital before leaving at lunchtime on Tuesday.

Ayla Ronald

A senior associate at law firm Clifford Chance, New Zealand lawyer Ronald, 36, worked on Lynch's acquittal.

Her father, Lin Ronald, told The Telegraph she had been invited on to the yacht to celebrate the court case win. He said she had texted him to say that she and her partner, Matthew Fletcher, had survived the sinking.

Clifford Chance confirmed on Tuesday that Ronald and her partner had been rescued from the superyacht.

Other survivors

A number of people thought to have been rescued have been named by various local media, including captain James Catfield; Sasha Murray, 29, from Ireland; Myin Htun Kyaw, 39, who has a Burmese passport, and Matthew Griffith.

A Dutch foreign ministry spokesperson said a man from the Netherlands had been rescued and was not in a life-threatening condition. South African nationals Leah Randall and Katja Chicken, who worked as crew members on the Bayesian, were named by the Italian coastguard. It has been reported that all 15 survivors are now at a hotel in the city of Bagheria.

British ambassador to Italy, Edward Llewellyn, said four British citizens are missing and seven have been accounted for.

Speaking outside a hotel where he met survivors, he said: “My heart goes out to them. I’ve spoken to some of the British survivors both yesterday and today — I want to express my deep sympathy from myself and colleagues at the British Embassy for what’s happened."

Read more: ‘I held her afloat with all my strength’: British mother saves baby from drowning on superyacht (The Telegraph)

Bayesian search latest

The six people who are missing are feared to have died, with their bodies trapped inside the yacht, the Italian coastguard said on Tuesday.

Asked about the likelihood of them being alive, spokesman Vincenzo Zagarola said: “Never say never, but reasonably the answer should be not.”

Divers have reportedly opened a hole in the ship's hull in an effort to access the cabins.

The fire department, Vigili del Fuoco, said that early inspections of the wreck were “unsuccessful” due to limited access to the bridge and furniture obstructing passages.

Divers are tag-teaming in 12-minute underwater shifts to search the vessel, with the teams made up of two specialist cave divers. The rotating search teams can only stay below for that length of time because the Bayesian vessel is resting at a depth of 50m – requiring special precautions.

The UK's Marine Accident Investigation Branch said four of its inspectors were being deployed to Palermo to make a basic assessment. It has not launched an investigation at this stage.

Read more: Search for missing tech magnate to resume after superyacht sinks near Sicily (PA Media)

What we don't know

While it is thought the yacht encountered bad weather, the exact nature of the incident hasn't been confirmed.

One witness told the Ansa news agency the boat "took a little to raise the anchor" and head into the nearby port, adding: "They were evidently surprised by the storm that suddenly fell and failed to avoid the sinking."

It is thought the storm would have broken the vessel's sail tree, which would have caused an imbalance of the boat, Ansa reported, but this has not been confirmed by authorities.

Luca Mercalli, one of Italy’s leading climate experts and president of the Italian Meteorological Society, suggested that given that authorities had issued a "yellow" weather alert, followed by a "moderate" alert, crew could have been more vigilant.

“I don’t know if there was anyone on board consulting the radar," he told the Telegraph. “Let’s say that if I had been on board, at the first sign of a thunderstorm I would have woken up all the occupants and been ready and alert with life jackets on until the storm was over.”

Co-defendant in fraud trial killed in separate tragedy

Lynch's co-defendant in his US fraud trial, Stephen Chamberlain, died after he was hit by a car on Saturday.

Chamberlain, the former vice-president of Autonomy, was struck by the vehicle while out running in Cambridgeshire on Saturday morning, his lawyer said.

He and Lynch were acquitted of all 15 fraud and conspiracy charges against them over the sale of Autonomy to Hewlett Packard.

Chamberlain's lawyer, Gary Lincenberg, said: “Our dear client and friend Steve Chamberlain was fatally struck by a car on Saturday while out running. He was a courageous man with unparalleled integrity. We deeply miss him.

“Steve fought successfully to clear his good name at trial earlier this year, and his good name now lives on through his wonderful family.”

Read more: Mike Lynch's co-defendant dies after being hit by car days before yacht sinking (Sky News)

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Who are Mike Lynch and the other people missing after a yacht sank in Sicily?

Bill Chappell

Mike Lynch remains missing after a luxury yacht sank off of Sicily's coast. Lynch, who sold his tech firm Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard in 2011, had recently been acquitted of fraud charges related to the sale. Dan Kitwood/Getty Images hide caption

Search teams are scouring waters along Italy’s southwestern shore, where a luxury sailing yacht sank early Monday. Six people are known to be missing, including British tech tycoon Mike Lynch and his daughter, and Morgan Stanley International Chairman Jonathan Bloomer and his wife.

Faced with the possibility that some people might have been trapped inside the ship when it sank in a storm, dive teams (including cave divers from the local fire brigade) have been looking for ways to enter the vessel.

The Palermo Coast Guard told NPR on Tuesday that such an operation is complicated by the depth and position of the hull, which lies on the seabed at a depth of around 50 meters, about a half-mile from the port in Porticello, Sicily.

Lynch, a mathematician and longtime tech entrepreneur, was on a vacation voyage that apparently doubled as a celebration of his recent acquittal on federal fraud charges in the U.S. At least two members of his legal team were reportedly on the boat.

Here’s what we know about Lynch and the tragic situation off Sicily’s coast: 

A rescue boat of the Italian Coast Guard operates in Porticello near Palermo, on Tuesday, a day after the British-flagged luxury yacht Bayesian sank. Specialist divers launched a fresh search for six people, including U.K. tech tycoon Mike Lynch. Alberto Pizzoli/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

Who is Mike Lynch?

Lynch, 59, made his name as the founder and longtime leader of Autonomy, a search engine and software company that helped companies manage information. Hewlett-Packard bought Autonomy for $11 billion in 2011, but Lynch then faced accusations — and then federal charges — that he had misrepresented his company’s financial health and prospects. Lynch denied the claims, saying HP was blaming him for its own problems.

Lynch was indicted on multiple fraud and conspiracy counts in late 2018, months after Autonomy’s former chief financial officer, Sushovan Hussain, was convicted of fraud (he was later sentenced to five years in prison).

Search resumes for British tech magnate and 5 others after yacht sinks off Sicily

Lynch successfully delayed extradition from the U.K. until May 2023 . Earlier this year, the case finally culminated in a lengthy trial in San Francisco that ended with Lynch’s acquittal of all charges against him in June , after he testified on his own behalf.

Also acquitted was Stephen Chamberlain, Autonomy’s former finance VP. But on Saturday — just two days before Lynch was caught in a boating catastrophe — Chamberlain was killed in a car accident , after he was struck while out for a run.

Lynch earned a Ph.D. in adaptive pattern recognition from Cambridge University. In 2006, he was awarded an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) honor for his work in the U.K.’s tech industry. After selling Autonomy, he founded an investment group focused on startups emerging from Cambridge University.

Who else was aboard?

Survivors include Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares, along with Charlotte Golunski, who works at Invoke Capital, Lynch’s venture capital firm. Golunski was on the ship with her daughter, Sofia, who had just celebrated her first birthday. In an interview with La Repubblica , Golunski said she held her little girl as she floated in darkness, using all her strength to keep her arms up and prevent Sofia from drowning. Sophia’s father was also onboard and survived.

Ayla Ronald, a lawyer who worked on Lynch’s fraud case, and her partner also escaped the wreck. Other survivors include several crew members, including two women in their early 20s who were part of the ship’s staff.

Missing along with Lynch and Bloomer are Lynch’s daughter, Hannah, 18; Bloomer’s wife, Judy; a lawyer for Lynch named Chris Morvillo; and his wife, Neda, according to local newspaper Giornale di Sicilia .

Bloomer was a partner at Arthur Andersen for some 20 years, until 1994, according to his LinkedIn profile . He then led the financial services company Prudential before taking on a number of chairman roles, including at the legal services firm DWF.

Bloomer is also currently chairman of insurance company the Hiscox Group.

“We are deeply shocked and saddened by this tragic event,” Hiscox CEO Aki Hussain said in a statement sent to NPR. “Our thoughts are with all those affected, in particular our Chair, Jonathan Bloomer, and his wife Judy, who are among the missing, and with their family as they await further news from this terrible situation.”  

#Palermo , naufragio imbarcazione a Porticello: proseguono da parte dei #vigilidelfuoco le ricerche delle 6 persone segnalate come disperse. Giunti da Cagliari, Sassari e Roma i #sommozzatori speleo [ #19agosto 19:30] pic.twitter.com/7WY30ckxcK — Vigili del Fuoco (@vigilidelfuoco) August 19, 2024

What happened to the yacht?

The gathering took place aboard a massive sailing yacht called Bayesian — a term that, in mathematics and statistics, refers to probability and uncertainty. The yacht’s overall length is listed at 55.9 meters (183 feet).

The Bayesian was off the coast of Porticello when it was swamped by a violent storm before dawn on Monday morning. Numerous eyewitness accounts cited a waterspout — a highly localized spiraling storm that’s essentially a marine tornado. Around that time, the Bayesian was located in the Tyrrhenian Sea, according to the Marine Traffic tracking site.

The ship, which had 22 people aboard, sank. In the aftermath, 15 people were rescued, but one died and six were unaccounted for.  

What about the rescue effort?

Helicopters and marine craft have been searching for any sign of the passengers, hoping to find more survivors. Sea and cave divers have also been part of the effort.

Italy’s fire brigade, Vigili del Fuoco, says it is working on a plan for divers to enter the sunken vessel. An initial attempt on Monday was cut short after divers were able to gain only limited access , citing furniture that blocked a passageway.

When asked about the possibility of finding any other survivors of the calamity, Comandante Vincenzo Zagarola of the Italian Coast Guard told radio station RTL 102.5 on Tuesday that given how much time has elapsed, it’s difficult to imagine a good outcome for the missing passengers. But, he said, the search will continue.

Tech tycoon, defense attorney, and Morgan Stanley banker among those missing in freak yacht sinking

A superyacht that sank off the Sicilian coast during a storm left six passengers missing, including British tech kingpin Mike Lynch and his daughter Hannah

LONDON -- A superyacht that sank Monday off the Sicilian coast during a storm left six passengers missing, including British tech kingpin Mike Lynch and some of his inner circle, who were gathered to celebrate his victory in a long-running legal trial.

Lynch was acquitted in June in a U.S. fraud case and was apparently aboard the Bayesian with some of the people who stood by him throughout the ordeal. Another member of Lynch's legal team who wasn't aboard, Reid Weingarten, said the outing was intended in part as a celebration of the acquittal.

Here's a look at the people who are missing, as well as details on the recent death of an associate of Lynch who was not on the yacht.

Software entrepreneur Mike Lynch , along with his daughter, Hannah, are among those that police divers are searching for after the yacht was struck by a waterspout off of Porticello, near Palermo.

A spokesperson for Lynch said there were no updates Tuesday.

Lynch had been trying to move past a Silicon Valley debacle that had tarnished his legacy as an icon of British ingenuity.

A Cambridge-educated mathematician, Lynch made his mark with Autonomy, which made a search engine that could pore through emails and other internal business documents to help companies find vital information more quickly. Autonomy’s steady growth in its first decade resulted in Lynch being dubbed Britain’s Bill Gates and earning him one of the U.K’s highest honors, the Office of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire in 2006.

Lynch, 59, sold Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard for $11 billion in 2011 . But the deal quickly turned sour after he was accused of cooking the books to make the sale.

The fraud allegations resulting in Lynch being fired by HP’s then-CEO Meg Whitman and a decade-long legal battle. It culminated with him being extradited from the U.K. to face criminal charges of masterminding a multibillion-dollar fraud.

Lynch steadfastly denied any wrongdoing, asserting that he was being made a scapegoat for HP’s own bungling — a position he maintained while testifying before a jury during a 2 1/2 month trial in San Francisco earlier this year. U.S. Justice Department prosecutors called more than 30 witnesses in an attempt to prove their allegations against Lynch.

Lynch was vindicated at trial in June after being cleared of all charges. Lynch pledged to return to the U.K. and explore new ways to innovate.

Although he avoided a possible prison sentence, Lynch still faced a potentially huge bill stemming from a civil cased in London that HP mostly won in 2022. Damages haven’t been determined in that case, but HP is seeking $4 billion. Lynch made more than $800 million from the Autonomy sale.

Lynch later went on to set up technology investment firm Invoke Capital.

One of Lynch’s U.S. lawyers, Christopher Morvillo of the firm Clifford Chance, and his wife Neda were also on the yacht and are among those unaccounted for.

Morvillo is regarded as an elite defense attorney specializing in fraud and corruption cases. He was previously a federal prosecutor in New York who worked on the criminal investigation of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. His father, Robert Morvillo, was also a lawyer who represented high-profile clients, including Martha Stewart.

In a LinkedIn post soon after Lynch's acquittal, Morvillo paid tribute to the team of lawyers who worked on the case and also his wife and two daughters.

“None of this would have been possible without your love and support. I am so glad to be home,” he wrote. The post ended with the words: “And they all lived happily ever after….”

In a legal podcast released last week, Morvillo recounted his involvement with Lynch's case, starting from when his firm was hired in November 2012.

He flew to London to meet Lynch on Thanksgiving weekend that year and assumed he would be gone for a week, Morvillo told the For the Defense podcast. Instead, Morvillo said he “spent a significant portion of the rest of my life bouncing back and forth between London and New York.”

The case has “covered one third of my career,” he said. “It has been a constant presence in my life for the last 12 years.”

Clifford Chance said it was “in shock and deeply saddened by this tragic incident” and that its thoughts are with Morvillo and his wife. “Our utmost priority is providing support to the family,” the firm said.

The chairman of Morgan Stanley's London-based investment banking subsidiary, Jonathan Bloomer, and his wife, Judy, were also among the yacht's missing.

Bloomer is non-executive chairman of both Morgan Stanley International, which covers markets outside the U.S., and the Hiscox Group, an insurer that does business on the Lloyd’s of London insurance marketplace.

Lynch appointed Bloomer to Autonomy’s board of directors in 2010, where he served as chairman of the audit committee at the time of the HP deal. Bloomer testified for the defense at Lynch’s trial.

Both Morgan Stanley and Hiscox said they were “deeply shocked and saddened" by the tragedy.

“Our thoughts are with all those affected, in particular the Bloomer family, as we all wait for further news from this terrible situation," the bank said.

Aki Hussain, the group chief executive of Hiscox, said "our thoughts are with all those affected, in particular our chair, Jonathan Bloomer, and his wife Judy, who are among the missing, and with their family as they await further news from this terrible situation.”

In a strange coincidence, another former Autonomy executive who was acquitted alongside Lynch of the fraud charges died days before the sinking of the Bayesian.

Stephen Chamberlain “was fatally struck by a car on Saturday while out running,” his lawyer Gary Lincenberg said in a statement.

Chamberlain, formerly a vice-president of finance at the company, was accused of artificially inflating Autonomy’s revenues and making false and misleading statements to auditors, analysts and regulators.

He stood trial with Lynch, and was also found not guilty.

“He was a courageous man with unparalleled integrity. We deeply miss him," Lincenberg said. “Steve fought successfully to clear his good name at trial earlier this year, and his good name now lives on through his wonderful family.”

Chamberlain “was a much-loved husband, father, son, brother and friend," his family said in statement released through Cambridgeshire Police. “He was an amazing individual whose only goal in life was to help others in any way possible."

Police said the driver, a 49-year-old woman, remained at the scene in the village of Stretham, England, and was assisting with the investigation.

AP writer Eric Tucker in Washington contributed to this report.

This version has corrected a date to 2001 sted 2002.

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Tornado likely sank luxury yacht off coast of Sicily, officials say, as search for survivors continues

Updated on: August 20, 2024 / 7:56 PM EDT / CBS/AP

Police divers resumed searching Tuesday for six people believed trapped in the hull of a superyacht that sank in deep seas off Sicily, including a British tech magnate who was celebrating his recent acquittal on fraud charges with the people who had defended him at trial.

Civil protection officials said they believed the Bayesian, a 184-foot British-flagged yacht, had been struck by a tornado over the water. The ship had been moored about a half-mile offshore off Porticello near Palermo when a storm rolled and the vessel sank at about 5 a.m. local time on Monday . 

Grainy film from closed-circuit cameras from shore, broadcast on the website of the Giornale di Sicilia, showed the majestic, illuminated 246-foot mast of the Bayesian weathering the storm and then disappearing over the course of a minute.

Fifteen of the 22 people aboard survived, including a mother who reported holding her 1-year-old baby over the waves to save her. One body was recovered, identified by officials as the Antiguan-born on-board chef. The rest of the 10-person crew survived, including the captain whom prosecutors reportedly sought to interview.

However, CBS News senior weather producer David Parkinson said Tuesday that it's still too early to determine whether the yacht was hit by a waterspout or a downburst. A waterspout is a meteorological term for a tornado over water, while a downburst consists of powerful winds that descend from a thunderstorm and can often be misinterpreted as a tornado, according to the National Weather Service.

As of now, Parkinson said, it's only safe to say that the yacht was impacted by a severe thunderstorm. Based on satellite imagery, there were strong to violent thunderstorms in the area where the yacht sank, Parkinson said.

That said, early Monday morning conditions were appropriate for either the development of a waterspout or a downburst, Parkinson explained. At around 4 a.m. local time Monday, the winds spiked, with wind gusts above 43 mph in Palermo. About 10 minutes later in the town of Aspra — which is 20 miles from Palermo and three to four miles west of where the boat sank — wind gusts of 51 mph were recorded, and the thunderstorms appeared to intensify as they moved east.

In cases of downbursts, when wind hits the water's surface, it increases the wind speed, Parkinson said. While at the time the boat sank, water temperatures were 84 degrees Fahrenheit, which would be warm enough to support the development of a waterspout, Parkinson said. 

"It's a great, great tragedy," said Britain's ambassador to Italy, Edward Llewellyn, who visited Porticello on Tuesday. Britain sent four investigators to the scene, given the disaster involved a British-flagged ship and British citizens were among the missing.

Fire rescue officials have said the six other passengers will be considered missing until they are located in the wreckage. They include tycoon Mike Lynch , who was once hailed as Britain's king of technology and was cleared in June of fraud and conspiracy charges in a U.S. federal trial related to Hewlett Packard's $11 billion takeover of his company, Autonomy Corp.

Also unaccounted for are Christopher Morvillo, one of Lynch's lawyers, and Jonathan Bloomer, a chairman at Morgan Stanley International and the former head of the Autonomy audit committee who testified in Lynch's defense.

The wreckage of the luxury craft is some 164 feet underwater — far deeper than most recreational divers are certified for and a depth that requires special precautions. Recovery crews could only stay for 12-minute shifts, a measure that slowed their efforts to reach the cramped inside of the wreck.

Karsten Borner, the captain of the Sir Robert Baden Powell, which rescued the 15 survivors who managed to get into a lifeboat, said he was close enough to be able to see the Bayesian as the storm came in.

"A moment later, she was gone," he said. "They said they went flat on the water and were sunk in two minutes," Borner added, quoting the survivors.

The rotating search teams, each made up of two specialized cave divers, worked Tuesday to open up access points to get inside the wreck. They were using a remote-controlled underwater vehicle, or ROV, to help in the search.

The divers hadn't been able to access the below-deck cabins because they were blocked by furniture that had shifted during the violent storm. Rescue crews said they assume the missing six are in those cabins because the storm struck when most would be sleeping, but the teams haven't verified their presence there through portholes.

Luca Cari, a spokesman for the rescue teams, said the search was proceeding much more slowly than another big shipwreck in Italy, the 2012 Costa Concordia cruise ship that flipped on its side off Tuscany's coast, because of the depth of the wreck and the limited space divers have to maneuver.

"That was much simpler. Here everything is more tight," he said.

The outing was intended at least in part as a celebration of Lynch's acquittal and a "looking forward to what was coming next," said Reid Weingarten, a Washington attorney and a member of Lynch's defense team who was not on the yacht.

"A lot of people went, a lot of people were planning to go and then of course this happened," Weingarten said.

Some of the people who stood by Lynch throughout the ordeal were on board, including Morvillo, the lawyer, who Weingarten worked with and said "was like a brother."

Morvillo's wife, Neda, is also missing, according to his law firm Clifford Chance.

Aki Hussain, CEO of international insurer Hiscox Group, where Bloomer, the witness, was chairman, said the company was "deeply shocked and saddened by this tragic event."

"Our thoughts are with all those affected, in particular our Chair, Jonathan Bloomer, and his wife Judy, who are among the missing, and with their family as they await further news from this terrible situation," he added.

Among the survivors, the Emslie family was released from Palermo's pediatric hospital on Tuesday where little Sofia had been kept overnight after her rescue. Her mother, Charlotte Golunski, had reported that she momentarily lost hold of the 1-year-old in the water but then managed to hold her up over the waves until a lifeboat inflated and they were both pulled to safety, doctors said.

The father, identified by ANSA news agency as James Emslie, also survived.

"They don't talk much, primarily because they consider themselves survivors and they don't understand why they survived given what they went through," said Dr. Domenico Cipolla, head of the emergency room at Di Cristina Pediatric Hospital.

Speaking to reporters Tuesday, Cipolla said Golunski had reported that she and the baby were sleeping in the cabin and suddenly found themselves in the water, where they also found Emslie who had been in a different part of the ship. Cipolla said the parents had been in touch with other survivors, who are being housed at a nearby hotel and were waiting for other family members to arrive in Sicily.

The baby slept well overnight and all were released after final checks Tuesday morning, he said according to a videotaped interview posted on Palermo Today, adding that psychologists had been made available.

Among the other survivors was Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares. Hannah Lynch, reportedly the couple's 18-year-old daughter, is among the missing.

The yacht's registered owner is listed as Revtom Ltd., according to online maritime database Equasis. Bacares is listed as Revtom's sole owner, according to corporate registration documents from the Isle of Man.

Its name, Bayesian, may be a reference to "Bayesian Inference," one of the two main approaches to statistical machine learning and the one that was used by Lynch's company.

The yacht, built in 2008 by the Italian firm Perini Navi, was carrying 12 passengers and 10 crew. According to online charter companies, it had been available for charter for about $215,000 a week and was notable for its massive aluminum mast, one of the tallest in the world.

The coast guard said to date there was no trace of fuel leaks from the wreckage.

In an unrelated event, Lynch's co-defendant in the Autonomy trial who was also cleared, Stephen Chamberlain, was killed Sunday when he was hit by a car while running in Cambridgeshire, England, said Chamberlain's lawyer, Gary Lincenberg.

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• United Kingdom

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Inside Story of Missing Billionaire Whose Luck Ran Out on Superyacht

Mike Lynch became one of the very few people to score an acquittal in his recent federal criminal case. But months later, that luck was wiped away.

Michael Daly

Special Correspondent

Henry Nicholls/Reuters

Less than half of 1 percent of federal criminal cases end in an acquittal, so billionaire Mike Lynch and his co-defendant, Stephen Chamberlain, seemed to be the luckiest of unlucky men on June 6 this year, when they were found not guilty of fraud charges that could have landed them in prison for 25 years.

But 2 months after that ebullient moment on the 17th floor of the federal courthouse in San Francisco, their fortunes took a tragic turn.

On Saturday, Chamberlain suffered fatal injuries when he was struck by a car while out for a run near his home in England.

And then, on Monday, Lynch was among the six declared missing after a tornadic waterspout sunk the 184-foot sailing yacht Bayesian, as it was anchored a half-mile off the coast of Sicily. Lynch’s younger daughter, 18-year-old Hannah, who had recently earned a place at Oxford, was also missing. So were one of the defense attorneys in the case, former federal prosecutor Christopher Morvillo, and his wife.

“In the course of 48 hours, I can’t process what has happened, but both of our clients, as well as Chris and his wife, are gone,” law partner Gary Lincenberg told Business Insider .

A paper trail indicates that the ill-fated yacht is owned by Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares. It is apparently named after the Bayesian Inference, an approach to probability that was both the focus of Lynch’s PhD thesis and the underpinning of the software that made him Britain’s first tech billionaire.

The very fact that Lynch ever got a doctorate from Cambridge was an improbability in itself. He is the son of Irish immigrants. His mother was an intensive care nurse from County Tipperary. His father, a firefighter from County Cork, advised Lynch not to enter a profession that involved charging into burning buildings. Lynch was bright enough to secure scholarships at an exclusive private school and then a university. His genius was not so much in engineering itself, but in applying it.

He studied machine learning before it was fashionable, and co-founded a series of start-ups. One was Autonomy Technology, which he sold to Hewlett-Packard for $11.7 billion after a secret meeting with its top executives in 2011. Hewlett-Packard’s then-CEO, Léo Apotheker, had hoped to turn it from a faltering computer hardware clunker into a high-profit software giant. He ended up taking the combined companies towards an $8 billion loss.

The new CEO, Meg Whitman, alleged that Lynch and others at Autonomy had cooked the books before the sale to make it look more profitable than it was. Hewlett-Packard sued Lynch civilly in England in 2019 and he spent 20 days testifying. Then, in early 2022 , Justice Robert Hildyard issued a 1,700-page decision finding that Lynch and Autonomy had committed fraud. The Crown sought $4 billion in damages that are still pending.

At the same time, federal authorities in the U.S. sought to extradite Lynch on criminal charges. Lynch fought it for two years before he arrived in San Francisco in chains in May of 2023. He was released on $100 million bail and consigned to house arrest in a rental home with cameras installed in every room and two armed guards on duty around the clock.

The judge in San Francisco was Charles Breyer, brother of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer. Charles had also overseen the trial of Lynch’s right-hand man, Autonomy Chief Financial Officer Sushovan Hussain, on fraud charges, in the same courtroom some months before. Hussain had been convicted. Lynch and Chamberlain seemed all but sure to suffer the same fate as their trial commenced in March of 2024.

British entrepreneur Mike Lynch leaves the High Court in London, Britain March 25, 2019.

The prosecution plodded through seemingly endless exhibits culled from 15 million financial documents and emails obtained for the case. One juror repeatedly dozed off.

“I know it’s not fascinating, but you’ve got to tell me whether you can stay awake for eight more weeks during this testimony,” Breyer said, according to The Times .

“That’s a negative,” the juror replied. “I can’t.”

The juror was replaced with an alternate and the case crept on to when Lynch took the stand on his own behalf. He testified that his first job had been cleaning floors in the hospital where his mother works.

“I’m still a demon mopper,” he testified.

He also described being Irish in England during the war with the IRA.

“You had to learn to run fast,” he said.

When it came to the decision to sell Autonomy, he said Hewlett-Packard was so anxious to make the deal that it had offered double the usual takeover price margin.

“The normal premium on the London market was about 30 percent,” he said. “HP was offering 60 percent. That would be like trying to stop a herd of elephants in terms of shareholders agreeing to it.”

His attorney, Chris Morvillo, asked what the trial had been like for him.

“It’s surreal,” Lynch testified. “I’ve heard comments from people that just don’t paint the picture of the company that I and my colleagues and friends worked at for 15 years.”

Lynch added, “I’ve sat and watched a parade of witnesses that I’ve never met and some that I may have just shaken their hand, and I’ve heard about a series of transactions I have no involvement in.”

At the end of the 11-week trial, the jury acquitted Lynch and Chamberlain of all charges. Morvillo joined in their tearful exultation at being among the lucky very few.

Chamberlain’s luck ran out Saturday with a fatal encounter with a car. Lynch and Morvillo were on the Bayesian at 4:30 a.m. on Monday when the freak storm suddenly struck. An emergency flare went up into the darkness, but the boat had sunk by the time help arrived. The body of the cook was recovered, but there was no sign of six others, including Lynch and his daughter and Morvillo and his wife.

Fifteen of the passengers and crew were rescued. They included Lynch’s wife. There was also a 1-year-old child, Sophia, and her mother, Charlotte Golunski, a partner at another Lynch venture, Invoke Capital. The mother recounted her ordeal to the Italian press, saying she had been on deck when the raging storm tore her child from her arms.

“For two seconds I lost my baby in the sea,” the mother told Giornale di Sicilia . “Then I immediately hugged her again amid the fury of the waves.”

She summoned the fury of a mother.

“I held her afloat with all my strength, my arms stretched upwards to keep her from drowning. It was all dark. In the water, I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I screamed for help, but all I could hear around me was the screams of the others.”

A man in an inflatable lifeboat pulled her and Sophia to safety. They were joined by the child’s father. And they were now Monday’s luckiest of the unlucky.

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