September 22, 2024 –
On Saturday, September 21st, Italian newspaper La Nazione reported news of a representative for the Italian Sea Group filing documents in a Sicilian Court on Friday against the crew and widow of Bayesian superyacht owner Mike Lynch. The Italian builder reportedly sought legal damages of up to £186 million, citing reputational damage and loss of earnings due to the incident
However, in a follow-up published by La Nazione, the Italian builder denied the claims, stating: “Although TISG had given a generic mandate to the lawyers named in the article, no legal representative of the company examined, signed, or authorized any writ of summons.”
The builder stated that the lawyer behind the action was “not authorized” to pursue this claim and had been asked to immediately withdraw the filing. The Bayesian sailing yacht is built by Viareggio-based sailing group Perini Navi, which was acquired by TISG following declarations of bankruptcy.
Additionally, according to The Times, the filings revealed plans by the Italian Sea Group to build an additional three yachts totaling 222 million euros, prior to the Bayesian incident, The TImes report.
The Bayesian incident occurred on August 19th as harsh weather conditions caused the yacht to sink as it was anchored off of the Sicilian coast, causing Lynch, his daughter Hannah, and five other individuals to drown. The trip had 22 people on board, with 12 passengers and 10 crew, as the yacht took a total of 16 minutes to sink.
Later that week, the Italian authorities officially launched an open manslaughter investigation as officials believe it was not the harsh weather conditions leading to the incident, but the negligence and behavior of the crew.