The death boat on Lake Maggiore, a Dutch ferry built in 1982, could accommodate a maximum of 15 passengers: but there were 8 more on board, women and men, mostly from the Italian and Israeli Mossad secret services. The difficulties in the maneuverability of the vehicle, even in normal conditions, and the storm led to the tragedy with the death of four of its occupants.
In fact, at 7:20 p.m. on Sunday, May 28, this "floating house", a 15-meter-long "floating house", with 23 passengers on board, perhaps should not have moved far from the Sesto Calende dock, in the Varese province, but to stay close to the coast and therefore in a favorable position before possible rescue operations in the face of the sudden worsening of bad weather.
In addition, the weather forecasts, which were not read or were underestimated, announced a progressive worsening (at the Malpensa airport the planes that should have taken off remained parked on the runway) and announced the risk of even more critical events.
The storm, which would have included a waterspout and wind gusts between 70 and 90 kilometers per hour, some speculate even higher than 100, overturned the hull in the space of a few seconds, causing the death of four people.
Tiziana Barnobi and Claudio Alonzi, intelligence service agents, 53 and 62 years old, respectively, (she with one child and he with two) and Shimoni Erez, 53, born in Israel who allegedly served in the Mossad, and Anna Bozhkova, 50, a Russian woman from the city of Bryansk, who was in Italy with an unlimited residence permit and wife of the patron Claudio Carminati, are the four fatalities of the sinking.
Carminati, 10 years older than his wife, with extensive experience in various commercial activities, from clothing stores to pastry shops, has an excellent command of the Bulgarian language from previous jobs in Sofia as well as French, he was driving the boat this Sunday.
The trip across the lake was not planned, but rather occurred because, after some meetings in Lombardy to exchange information and documents, the Israelis had missed their return plane and decided to extend their stay over the weekend, until they returned on Monday the 29th. May to his country, according to one of the unofficial versions.
Taking advantage of the friendship with Carminati, it is unknown if on the Italian or foreign side, someone had proposed the trip on the waters. The result of the investigation by the Public Ministry of Busto Arsizio, led by Carlo Nocerino and the carabinieri of the Varese Provincial Command, under the command of Colonel Gianluca Piasentin, could trigger serious legal consequences for the boss (including the charge of homicide), owner together with his wife from the company Love Lake srl. newly created and owner of the boat.
On April 5, in the city of Alessandria, in the office of the notary Aldo Mariano, the couple ratified the creation of the company for the "organization of excursions", "boat accommodation activities" and the " management of hotels and non-hotel facilities, and in particular of owners, bed
The autopsies will reveal the cause of death because, in addition to drowning, it is not excluded that one or more victims were trapped in the sunken hull, at a depth of sixteen meters.
From sailors to residents and owners of boats on Lake Maggiore, they sailed, despite the meteorological dangers, to the place of the incident, some 120-150 meters from the coast.
"I heard screams for help, desperate screams. I saw many swimming in the icy water," said Franco Lora, a retiree.
"I immediately went out on the boat, but the boat was no longer visible, it had already been swallowed up by the lake. I could only see pieces of wood and chairs floating around," said Daniele Piccaluga, owner of the shipyard of the same name.
Advertising for Claudio Carminati's business on Lake Maggiore, a popular tourist destination in the southern Alps, included that "we sail even in case of rain".
It is not ruled out that there were modifications to the hull to add additional space for passengers, in the upper part of the ship, an end that the ongoing investigation will determine, as well as whether these changes were in accordance with the regulations or not, even if they could have amplified the impact of the storm. Investigation is not easy.
In the meantime, the possibility of real or presumed secrets linked to the Mossad missions in Lombardy will have to be evaluated, with the reconstruction of the days before the trip. Given the profiles of the victims, the roles and the type of work they carried out, there are many questions in this investigation that goes beyond the sinking of a ship in Lake Maggiore due to unfavorable weather conditions.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry indicated that one of the deceased is an Israeli citizen, in his fifties, a "former member of the Israeli security forces," reports Afp.
A statement from the Italian security services said the two Italian deceased worked in their country's intelligence services and were on a private trip.
The 16-meter-long boat capsized on Sunday afternoon off Lisanza, at the southern end of the lake, after being caught by a sudden storm and strong winds.
The president of the Lombardy region, Attilio Fontana, lamented on Sunday night "a very serious incident", caused by a "eddy", reports Afp.
Survivors were rescued from the water by other boats or managed to swim to shore.
The ship was carrying Italian and foreign tourists, and quickly sank.
According to the criteria of The Trust Project
