Mike Lynch's former colleague died in a car accident two days before the British billionaire's yacht sank
Stephen Chamberlain, an ex-colleague and a co-defendant of British billionaire Mike Lynch who went missing after his yacht sank off the coast of Sicily, was also killed in an accident just two days ago. Chamberlain was the former vice president of finance at Autonomy, which was founded by Lynch.
Was co-defendant in US fraud case
The 52-year-old was also a co-defendant along with Lynch, in a fraud case in the US. In June this year, the duo was cleared of fraud charges related to the $11.1 billion purchase of Autonomy by Hewlett-Packard in 2011.
They were accused of conspiring to inflate Autonomy¡¯s revenue before selling to HP and faced a total of 15 charges - one count of conspiracy and 14 counts of wire fraud.
Chamberlain, who left Autonomy in 2012, had worked for cybersecurity firm Darktrace and volunteered as a finance director for football club Cambridge United.
Chamberlain died after he was hit by a car while out running on Saturday.
¡°Our dear client and friend Steve Chamberlain was fatally struck by a car on Saturday while out running. He was a courageous man with unparalleled integrity. We deeply miss him. Steve fought successfully to clear his good name at trial earlier this year, and his good name now lives on through his wonderful family,¡± his lawyer, Gary Lincenberg, said.
British tech billionaire missing? ?
The car accident happened just two days before Lynch's luxury yacht sank in a tornado off the coast of Sicily early on Monday. The British tech billionaire, who was also known as UK's Bill Gates, and five others, including his daughter, have been missing after Bayesian, a 56-metre-long British-flagged sailboat, sank on Monday. Jonathan Bloomer, chairman of Morgan Stanley International, and Chris Morvillo, a lawyer at Clifford Chance who represented Lynch in the US fraud trial, and their wives are also unaccounted for.
Fifteen people rescued
Twenty-two people were on the boat that was anchored just off the port of Porticello when it was hit by ferocious weather. Fifteen people, including Lynch's wife, Angela Bacares, who owned the boat, and a one-year-old girl, have been rescued.
For more news and current affairs?from around the world, please visit?Indiatimes News.
