THE skipper of the luxury yacht on which Wye Valley millionaire Dean Kronsbein lost his life in a collision three years ago has been convicted and jailed for two years by a Sardinian court.

Mario Lallone was captain of the Ross-on-Wye businessman’s 88ft-long Amore when it collided with rocks after swerving to avoid a high speed crash with a motor cruiser belonging to former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi.

Mr Kronsbein, 61 – a friend of Weston-under-Penyard Grand Tour presenter Richard Hammond, with whom he shared a love of classic cars – was thrown overboard in the collision off the jet set holiday destination of Porto Cervo, sustaining fatal injuries.

Both Lallone, 69, and Luigi Cortese, 60, captain of Berlosconi's Sweet Dragon Magnum 70 motorboat, faced manslaughter and shipwreck allegations over the July 31, 2022, fatal accident.

But according to the island's newspaper L'Unione Sarda, Lallone was deemed solely culpable and convicted of manslaughter.

Cortese was cleared of both charges by Tempio Gup trial judge Marcella Pinna, while Lallone was acquitted of the shipwreck offence.

L'Unione Sarda reported that the two yachts had been on a collision course in the Li Nibani stretch of sea before Amore had crashed onto the rocks.

Cortese's lawyer, Fabio Varone, said after the hearing: "I am very satisfied with my client's full acquittal of all the charges, because it does justice to Captain Cortese and his conduct, which, from the very beginning, we deemed unrelated to the Amore accident.

"His conduct was completely compliant with international and local navigation regulations."

Mr Kronsbein, who owned the Ultra-Filter Medical mask business in Ross and lived at Cubberley House near Walford, had been staying at his Italian island holiday home with his wife Sabine and daughter Sophia – who both sustained injuries – when the Sunday evening yachting tragedy happened.

Controversial former Italian prime minister Berlusconi, who died in 2023, was not on board his boat at the time, although members of his family were.

An in-depth reconstruction of the accident by the Italian Coast Guard concluded that the two boats were sailing on a collision course at 26-28 knots between Li Nibari and the Rocce islet, north of the millionaire's playground of Porto Cervo, in prohibited waters at excessive speed.

Lallone told investigators he was forced to suddenly change course to avoid colliding with the other boat, a version that father-of-two Mr Kronsbein’s family reportedly backed.

But Cortese claimed that the Amore yacht made the wrong manoeuvre, causing the collision with the islet rocks.

Mr Kronsbein's Cubberley House estate in Hom, which was previously owned by international singing star Roger Whittaker, was put on the market for £12.5m last month. His collection of Bentley's and other vintage cars was also put up for auction last year for £2.3m.

The millionaire was a member of the Bentley Owner’s Club, which held events at his Wyeside home, and had appeared on Richard Hammond’s The Smallest Cog vintage car TV show.

Paying tribute at the time of his death, the TV star said: “He really was a larger-than-life character... a kind-hearted, jovial person... I just can’t believe I won’t see him again in his colourful waistcoat and looking at his pocket watch. I’m just heartbroken for his family.”