Italian investigators have seized electronic devices and diving equipment belonging to the five divers who lost their lives inside the Vaavu Atoll cave system, locally known as Devana Kandu or Dhekunu Kandu, during the incident on May 14.
As the investigation continues, interviews with the Finnish cave recovery team and statements from local diving experts are beginning to paint a clearer picture of what may have led to the tragedy.
According to Italian media reports, authorities have confiscated mobile phones, computers, tablets, USB devices, and a hard drive belonging to the victims as part of an expanding manslaughter investigation launched by prosecutors in Rome.
Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reported that the items were transported back to Italy by Stefano Vanin, an associate professor of zoology at the University of Genoa, who had been aboard the liveaboard vessel Duke of York alongside Monica Montefalcone — a University of Genoa ecology professor and one of the victims.
Montefalcone, her daughter Giorgia Sommacal, researcher Muriel Oddenino, research assistant Federico Gualtieri, and diving instructor Gianluca Benedetti were reported missing after they failed to resurface from a dive on May 14.
During the initial search operation, Maldives National Defence Force rescue diver Staff Sergeant Mohamed Mahudhee also lost his life.
Benedetti’s body was recovered on the day of the incident, while the remaining divers were located on May 18 by Finnish cave specialists Sami Paakkarinen, Patria Grönqvist, and Jenni Westerlund, who were deployed by DAN Europe. The team recovered the remaining bodies over the following two days.
Italian investigators have additionally requested access to GoPro cameras, dive computers, and other gear recovered alongside the bodies by the Finnish recovery team. The equipment is currently being held by authorities in Malé.
Officials believe the devices could provide critical evidence about the dive, including recorded depths, dive duration, gas consumption data, and possibly video footage captured during the incident. Investigators are also hoping the data will help determine whether the divers intentionally entered the cave or were swept inside by strong currents.
However, based on accounts from the Finnish rescue team and reports in the Italian media, the leading theory suggests the divers voluntarily entered the cave system and became trapped after mistaking a dead-end passage for the exit.
