The captain of Sicily yacht James Cutfield is currently facing an investigation following the deaths of seven individuals in a tragic sinking incident.
Local reports suggest that 50-year-old is now under scrutiny after the 183-foot yacht sank off the coast of Porticello on Monday August 19, 2024, in early morning hours.
According to the Italian coast guard the disaster occured when a "violent storm" struck the region around 5 a.m. local time.
As per the reports, at least 22 people were on board at the time, including 12 passengers and 10 crew members, while 15 passengers were successfully rescued, seven tragically lost their lives.
According to the Italian news agency Ansa, Cutfield is officially being investigated for "negligent shipwreck and multiple counts of negligent homicide."
The captain was interrogated by prosecutors from the Termini Imerese Prosecutor's Office on Sunday, August 25, marking the second time he has been probed since the incident.
During the investigation, the New Zealander was asked about key details such as the keel’s position, the status of the hatch, and the timing of the alarm as weather conditions deteriorated.
During the two-hour session on Sunday, authorities pieced together the sequence of events, which took approximately 32 minutes from when the yacht began to take on water until the first distress flare was fired at 4:38 a.m., Ansa reported.
