LONDON -- A superyacht that sank Monday off the Sicilian coast during a storm left six passengers missing, including British tech kingpin Mike Lynch and some of his inner circle, who were gathered to celebrate his victory in a long-running legal trial.

Lynch was acquitted in June in a U.S. fraud trial and was reportedly on the Bayesian with some of the individuals who stood by him throughout the ordeal. Reid Weingarten, another member of Lynch's legal team who was not on board, stated that the outing was partially meant to commemorate the acquittal.

Here's a look at the individuals still missing after the incident, as well as information about the passing of an associate of Lynch in recent days who wasn't aboard the yacht.

Software entrepreneur Mike Lynch , along with his daughter, Hannah, are among those that police divers are searching for after the yacht was struck by a waterspout off of Porticello, near Palermo.

A spokesperson for Lynch said there were no updates Tuesday.

Lynch had been striving to recover from a Silicon Valley setback that had negatively impacted his reputation as a symbol of British ingenuity.

Lynch, a Cambridge-educated mathematician, made his mark with Autonomy, a company that developed a search engine capable of scrutinizing emails and other internal business documents to aid organizations in locating essential information more efficiently. Autonomy’s consistent growth during its first decade led to Lynch being recognized as Britain’s Bill Gates and awarded one of the U.K’s highest honors, the Office of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire in 2006.

Lynch, aged 59, sold Autonomy to Hewlett-Packard for $11 billion in 2011 . However, the transaction quickly soured after he faced accusations of manipulating financial records to enhance the sale.

The fraud allegations led to Lynch being dismissed by HP’s then-CEO Meg Whitman and a protracted legal dispute spanning a decade. Ultimately, he was extradited from the U.K. to confront criminal charges related to orchestrating a multibillion-dollar fraud.

Lynch firmly denied any wrongdoing, maintaining that he was being unfairly blamed for HP's own errors — a stance he held during his testimony before a jury in a two-and-a-half-month trial in San Francisco earlier this year. U.S. Justice Department attorneys presented evidence from over 30 witnesses in an attempt to support their accusations against Lynch.

Lynch was exonerated at trial in June when he was cleared of all charges. Lynch vowed to return to the U.K. and explore new avenues for innovation.

While he avoided a possible jail sentence, Lynch still faces a potentially large financial burden stemming from a civil lawsuit in London that HP largely prevailed in 2022. Damages have not been finalized in that case, but HP is seeking $4 billion. Lynch earned over $800 million from the sale of Autonomy.

Lynch subsequently established Invoke Capital, a technology investment firm.

Among those unaccounted for are Lynch’s U.S. lawyer, Christopher Morvillo of Clifford Chance, and his wife Neda, who were also aboard the yacht.

Morvillo is widely considered a top-tier defense attorney specializing in fraud and corruption cases. He previously served as a federal prosecutor in New York, working on the criminal investigation of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. His father, Robert Morvillo, was also a lawyer who represented high-profile clients, including Martha Stewart.

In a LinkedIn post soon after Lynch was acquitted, Morvillo praised the legal team who worked on the case, as well as his wife and two daughters.

"I couldn't have done it without your love and support. It's wonderful to be home," he wrote. The post concluded with the words: "And they all lived happily ever after...".

In a legal podcast released last week, Morvillo detailed his involvement with Lynch's case, beginning with his firm's engagement in November 2012.

Morvillo, speaking on the For the Defense podcast, recounted that he flew to London to meet Lynch over Thanksgiving weekend that year. He initially anticipated a one-week trip but ended up “spending a significant portion of the rest of my life bouncing back and forth between London and New York.”

He described the case as “covering one third of my career,” adding, “It has been a constant presence in my life for the last 12 years.”

Clifford Chance expressed its “shock and deep sadness over this tragic incident” and conveyed its condolences to Morvillo and his wife. “Our top priority is providing support to the family,” the firm stated.

Jonathan Bloomer, the chairman of Morgan Stanley's investment banking branch in London, and his wife, Judy, were also among those missing from the yacht.

Bloomer serves as the non-executive chairman of both Morgan Stanley International, which operates in markets outside the United States, and the Hiscox Group, an insurance company that participates in the Lloyd's of London insurance market.

In 2010, Lynch appointed Bloomer to Autonomy's board of directors, where he served as chairman of the audit committee during the HP acquisition. Bloomer provided testimony in support of the defense at Lynch's trial.

Both Morgan Stanley and Hiscox expressed their "deep shock and sadness" over the tragedy.

“We are thinking of everyone affected, particularly the Bloomer family, as we all await further news from this terrible situation," the bank said.

Aki Hussain, the group chief executive of Hiscox, said "our thoughts are with everyone impacted, especially our chair, Jonathan Bloomer, and his wife Judy, who are among the missing, and with their family as they await further news from this devastating incident.”

In an unusual turn of events, another former Autonomy executive, who was found not guilty alongside Lynch on fraud charges, died just days before the sinking of the Bayesian.

Stephen Chamberlain tragically passed away on Saturday after being struck by a car while jogging, according to a statement released by his attorney, Gary Lincenberg.

Chamberlain, previously serving as vice-president of finance at the company, was accused of artificially inflating Autonomy’s revenue figures and providing false and misleading information to auditors, financial analysts, and regulatory bodies.

He stood trial with Lynch, and was also found not guilty.

“He was a courageous man with exceptional integrity. We deeply miss him,” Lincenberg said. “Steve fought successfully to clear his reputation at trial earlier this year, and his good name now lives on through his wonderful family.”

Chamberlain's family, in a statement released through Cambridgeshire Police, described him as “a much-loved husband, father, son, brother and friend.” They added that he “was an amazing individual whose only goal in life was to help others in any way possible."

Authorities stated that the driver, a 49-year-old woman, remained at the scene in the village of Stretham, England, and is cooperating with the investigation.

___

AP reporter Eric Tucker in Washington, D.C. contributed to this coverage.