Latest on Mike Lynch’s Yacht: Divers smash window in hull hours before crucial Bayesian search

Mike Lynch, 59, is one of the UK’s most famous technology entrepreneurs. He founded Autonomy, the country’s largest software company, and has been referred to as the UK’s Bill Gates.

In 2011, Lynch sold his company to HP for $11 billion, after which the deal collapsed spectacularly as the US tech giant accused him of fraud, leading to a lengthy trial. Lynch was eventually acquitted by a San Francisco jury in June.

Lynch faces more than 20 years in prison in the United States if convicted of fraud and conspiracy charges.

An expert at the disaster site, who declined to be named, said the initial focus of the official investigation would be on whether the yacht’s crew had closed the ship’s access hatches before the storm hit.

Investigators will look into whether appropriate measures were taken, given the forecast for bad weather overnight.

Morvillo thanked his legal team and family, and concluded his speech with very moving words.

“Finally, a huge thank you to my wonderful, patient wife Nida Morvillo, and my two strong, wonderful, beautiful daughters Sabrina Morvillo and Sophia Morvillo,” he wrote. “None of this would have been possible without your love and support. I am so happy to be home. And they all lived happily ever after…”

Morvillo is a partner at Clifford Chance, a law firm specializing in employment matters with offices on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. He previously served as a federal prosecutor investigating the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, according to New York Post.

Rescue teams diving through the wreckage of the Bayezid managed to enter the yacht’s hull by smashing a glass window, according to local reports.

A local blacksmith made levers that were used to break the 3cm-thick glass, with firefighting divers then able to access the ship’s common areas through the gap, the Giornale di Sicilia reported Tuesday.

However, she added that they have not reached the cabins yet, which is expected to take some time as the entrances may be blocked.

The boat is reportedly leaning on its right side, making the operation more difficult.

Rescue teams trying to reach the sunken Baysman yacht may be hearing a temporary knocking sound, a senior university lecturer said.

A marine diving and wreck expert also warned that teams would have to make a “big choice” as they ramp up their efforts.

Read the full report below:

Luxury yacht sinks off the coast of Palermo, Sicily.

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

“The wind was very strong. The weather was expected to be bad but not this bad,” a coast guard official in Palermo told Reuters.

Storms and heavy rain have swept across Italy in recent days – with floods and landslides causing extensive damage in the north of the country – after weeks of extreme heat.

The ship left the port of Milazzo in Sicily on August 14 and was last tracked east of Palermo on Sunday evening, with a navigation status of “anchored,” according to ship-tracking app Vesselfinder.

Cave diving experts among rescuers still hoping to find survivors trapped underwater on luxury yachtBayesianwhich sank in a hurricane off Sicily.

The only hope of survival for the six passengers still missing – tech mogul Mike Lynch and his 18-year-old daughter; Morgan Stanley executive Jonathan Plummer and his wife Judy; and Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Nida – is believed to be in an air pocket on the stricken £30m ship.

Among those helping with the search are two divers trying to navigate the dark, narrow passages of the “perfectly intact” yacht, which now lies at a depth of 49 metres.

my colleague Barney Davis Reports:

A prominent New York lawyer, who is among the six missing passengers on a yacht that sank off the coast of Italy, was traveling with his longtime client, British technology entrepreneur Mike Lynch, just weeks after helping him avoid conviction in a 12-year legal saga.

Divers were still searching Tuesday for defense attorney and former federal prosecutor Christopher Morvillo, a partner at the law firm Clifford Chance, and his wife, Nida, along with Lynch and three other missing passengers.

Ayla Ronald, a senior partner based in London, and her partner are among the survivors, law firm Clifford Chance said in a statement Tuesday. Ronald also represented Lynch, according to her profile on the firm’s website.

“We are shocked and deeply saddened by this tragic incident,” a Clifford Chance spokesperson said.

Morvillo, 59, was Lynch’s lead lawyer and won an acquittal in June after a three-month trial in San Francisco in a fraud case linked to Hewlett-Packard’s acquisition of Lynch’s software company Autonomy, and has represented the British businessman since 2012.

He is the son of Robert Morvillo, who was considered one of New York’s most experienced criminal defense lawyers before his death in 2011. The younger Morvillo is also a prominent white-collar defender and former assistant U.S. attorney in Manhattan who helped with the criminal investigation into the September 11 attacks.

In 2011, Lynch sold Autonomy to HP for $11 billion, but the deal collapsed spectacularly as the US tech giant accused him of fraud.

One friend described Mike Lynch as “a very easy person to talk to”, with a “nice sense of humour”.

Richard Smith, who lives near Lynch in the village of Pettistree in Suffolk, told the BBC: “He’s a very friendly person and very easy to talk to. He has a nice sense of humour. You’d think with all that money he’d be hard to talk to, but he was actually a very easy person to talk to.”

CCTV footage has shown the moment a storm swept over the luxury yacht Albaiz, carrying 22 people, off the coast of Sicily.

The tall mast of the vehicle can be seen in the black-and-white footage, and rain appears to be pouring heavily in the foreground.

my colleague Jabed Ahmed Reports: