Mike Lynch Superyacht Update: Bayesian skipper 'refuses to answer questions' in manslaughter probe

Good evening, that's it for today on our coverage.

According to the Marine Traffic website, the Bayesian sent its last signal before sinking via automatic identification system (AIS) tracking at 0206 GMT.

A red flare alerting rescue services to an emergency was fired into the sky at 0238 GMT, 30 minutes after the boat went down, chief prosecutor Ambrogio Cartuccio said.

Palermo's fire brigade chief Girolamo Bentioglio Fandra said the boat had sunk by the stern and was lying on its starboard side at a depth of about 50 meters (164 feet).

On the boat, the bodies of the dead were found in the cabins on the left side of the boat, where passengers may have tried to find the remaining balloons, he added.

Prosecutor Camarano said all the passengers were probably asleep during the storm, which is why they were unable to escape.

Bayesian captain James Cutfield was asked to appoint a lawyer after Italian prosecutors investigated the sinking of the boat on Sunday.

The 51-year-old man is being investigated for possible manslaughter and shipwreck, according to his lawyer Aldo Mordiglia.

Mr Mordiglia is one of two lawyers representing New Zealand. The other is Giovanni Rizzotti, a lawyer from Palermo.

According to Italian media reports, Mr. Mordiglia, from Genoa, specializes in maritime and international law.

Captain of Bayesian Yatt chose not to answer prosecutors' questions as he was interviewed for the third time on Tuesday, his lawyer has said.

James Cutfield, a 51-year-old New Zealand citizen, is being investigated for possible manslaughter and shipwreck.

“The captain exercised his right to remain silent for two main reasons,” lawyer Giovanni Rizzotti told reporters. “First, he's very tired. Second, our appointment was only on Monday and for a complete and accurate defense case we need to get a set of data that we don't have at the moment.

Being under investigation does not mean a crime or that charges must be pursued. Chief prosecutor Ambrogio Cartosio has said his team will consider every possible element of responsibility, including the captain, crew, people in charge of supervision and the yacht builder.

The Times One of Mr Cutfield's lawyers was reported as saying the captain was “understood to be very shaken” after the ordeal last Monday.

Jesalda Vignoni More in this report:

The sinking of the Bayesian off the coast of Sicily made headlines around the world, with interest heightened when it was revealed that British technology tycoon Mike Lynch was also on board.

It later emerged that the boat trip was Mr Lynch's celebration of winning a decade-long legal battle with friends, colleagues and his legal team.

Here we explain who was on board during the tragedy:

Hatches and doors left open overnight on the superyacht Bayesian could have contributed to the sinking in Italy, a shipping expert has said.

Sam Jefferson, editor of the magazine Sailing Today, believes that the ship's large mast may have contributed to the fatal incident.

Mr Jefferson told the PA news agency: “I would have said the boat was hit too hard by the wind, it hit on its side.

“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.

“The reason it was so difficult to rig was because the mast is so big.

“It acted almost like a seal. (It) pushed the boat hard towards itself.

“(The boat) filled with water before it could be righted.

“It's all speculation, but it's the only logical explanation.”

Reports of the sunken Bayesian in Italy have surfaced with Coast Guard divers beginning to film the wreck at the request of prosecutors as the investigation gathers pace.

There are reportedly still concerns about 18,000 liters of fuel and oil in the boat.

Speaking to local outlet Corriere della Sera, one fisherman said: “This is an environmental bomb at the bottom of our sea.”

In case you missed it over the bank holiday weekend, a gathering was held for the victims of the Bayesian tragedy in Porticello on Sunday.

Flowers were also sent to the sea to pay homage to the dead.

Bayesian was built in 2008 by Perini Navi, an Italian luxury yacht builder. It had the world's tallest aluminum mast, measuring 72 meters, but initial reports that the mast had broken in the storm have so far proved unfounded.

Giovanni Costantino, CEO of Italy's C Group, which owns Perini, said the boat was “one of the safest in the world” and essentially unsinkable.

They blamed a chain of human errors for the sinking as the storm was expected. It based its claims in part on data from automated identification systems. The captain and other crew members have not spoken publicly about the disaster and efforts by Reuters to reach them were unsuccessful.

If the crew had closed all doors and hatches, turned on the engine, raised the anchor, lowered the keel and turned the yacht to face the wind, there would have been no damage, Costantino said.

He added that the data showed that it took 16 minutes for the yacht to be hit by the wind, and it began to take on water.

The Bayesian was anchored in the port of Porticello, near Palermo, when it sank in the early morning darkness amid an extremely severe and sudden weather event.

Prosecutor Rafael Camarano said on Saturday that the event was likely a “downburst,” a very strong downwind that is an intense but relatively frequent occurrence at sea, rather than a spot of water that the storm formed. Include swirling winds.

The Coast Guard has also said that given the weather forecast, there was nothing wrong with Baysian being moored offshore instead of being sheltered at port. Another boat anchored nearby escaped the storm unscathed.

Twenty-two people were on board, and 15 survived, including nine of the 10 crew members as well as Lynch's wife, whose company Bayesian owned. They were found on a life raft.

Six of the 12 passengers died. Prosecutors, who have the boat's captain, James Cutfield, under investigation for manslaughter and shipwreck, said the ship would have to be taken out of the water before the investigation is complete.