British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch's body was recovered Thursday from the wreckage of a luxury yacht that capsized off the coast of Sicily earlier this week. Rescue teams continue searching for one remaining missing person, a woman, whom Italian officials believe to be Lynch's 18-year-old daughter, Hannah.
The tragedy unfolded when severe weather caused the yacht to capsize near Palermo early Monday. The accident claimed the lives of six people, including Lynch, whose body was the fifth to be recovered. Four bodies were found on Wednesday. Among the 15 survivors were Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares, and Charlotte Golunski, a partner at Lynch's venture capital firm, Invoke Capital.
Jonathan Bloomer, the chairman of Morgan Stanley International, was also among those initially reported missing. Rescue efforts are ongoing, with the sixth body still unaccounted for as of Thursday.
Mike Lynch was a prominent figure in the tech industry, having founded the software company Autonomy, which was sold to Hewlett-Packard in 2011 for $11.7 billion. The deal later led to accusations of fraud against Lynch, resulting in a lengthy legal battle. While a San Francisco jury recently acquitted him, Lynch had previously lost a related civil case in the U.K.
Lynch also established Invoke Capital, a venture capital firm that raised over $1 billion for its inaugural fund. His death comes just days after the passing of Stephen Chamberlin, a former Autonomy executive and co-defendant in Lynch's U.S. trial, who died after being struck by a car while jogging.
The yacht's capsizing may have been triggered by severe thunderstorms in the area, partially fueled by hot waters. There is speculation that a waterspout could have contributed to the incident. However, such tornadoes over water rarely cause vessels to sink.
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