The first post-mortem examinations on two victims of the Bayesian superyacht sinking have been carried out.
Seven people died when the luxury boat, owned by British tech tycoon Mike Lynch, capsized off the coast of Sicily, Italy, after being hit by a sudden, violent storm in the early hours of 19 August.
US lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda, the first victims to undergo a post-mortem, were found to have drowned.
Mr Morvillo was in Mr Lynch’s legal team in a fraud case involving the 2011 sale of Autonomy to Hewlett Packard in a $11bn (£8.3bn) deal.
The British entrepreneur, 59, who co-founded Autonomy, was acquitted in June and he had organised the yacht trip to celebrate his legal victory.
The bodies of six of the victims, including Mr Lynch, his 18-year-old daughter Hannah, and passengers Jonathan and Judy Bloomer, were discovered in the wreck during a five-day search operation by divers.
The yacht’s chef Recaldo Thomas was found dead near the boat the day after the disaster happened.
Mr Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares, survived the sinking, along with 14 other people.
The post-mortem examinations were carried out by coroners designated by Palermo prosecutors, who confirmed the results.
Read more:
CCTV shows Bayesian engulfed in storm moments before it sank
What we know about the Bayesian superyacht that sank
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Post-mortems are planned on Wednesday on the bodies of Mr Bloomer, who was the chairman of Morgan Stanley’s London-based investment banking subsidiary, and his wife Judy.
They are pending for Mr Lynch, his daughter and Mr Thomas.
Prosecutors are investigating the captain and two crew members for possible responsibility in connection with the sinking.
Meanwhile, American tech giant Hewlett Packard has said it is to continue with legal proceedings “through to their conclusion” to seek up to £3bn in damages from Mr Lynch’s estate in the UK.