Tech tycoon Mike Lynch has gone missing after his yacht sank off the coast of Sicily. His disappearance comes just weeks after his notable acquittal in an £8bn fraud case.
- Lynch was cleared of fraud charges in the US following a protracted legal battle with HP.
- The tycoon was aboard his yacht Bayesain during a freak tornado off Palermo’s coast.
- Lynch’s wife and several others were rescued, but he and his daughter Hannah remain missing.
- Italian authorities have commenced searches, but hopes of finding the missing parties are dwindling.
In a recent tragic turn of events, tech tycoon Mike Lynch has gone missing after his yacht, Bayesian, sank off the coast of Sicily during a freak tornado. Just weeks earlier, Lynch had been acquitted in a high-profile £8bn fraud case in a US court, which concluded a long-standing legal battle with HP.
Lynch, often referred to as ‘Britain’s Bill Gates,’ was on his 56-metre yacht named after the statistical method central to his academic work. The yacht encountered severe weather near Palermo, resulting in its sinking. Lynch’s wife, Angela Bacares, and several other passengers were rescued, but Lynch and his daughter Hannah, along with a few others, remain missing.
Local fishermen reported seeing the vessel in distress before it sank, leaving debris scattered across the sea’s surface. Despite ongoing searches by Italian authorities, hopes of finding the missing passengers are diminishing.
This incident clouds the aftermath of Lynch’s recent court victory. He was cleared of criminal fraud charges related to allegations of inflating his software company, Autonomy’s value before its £8bn sale to HP in 2011. Although Lynch lost a civil case in the UK, his US acquittal surprised many in the industry.
Lynch, whose wealth was estimated at $450m, primarily resided on a Suffolk farm where he raised rare livestock. Apart from founding Autonomy, Lynch significantly contributed to the tech sector through ventures like Darktrace and his investment firm, Invoke Capital.
The fate of Mike Lynch remains uncertain as searches continue, casting a shadow over his recent legal triumph.
