A £4 million yacht has been impounded by police in Italy after an investigation was launched into the death of an East Lancashire man. Boat engineer Simon Johnson, 35, was found dead in mysterious circumstances on board Jersey-registered Motor Yacht Findings earlier this week.

The former ski instructor had been working as an engineer on the yacht off the coast of Genoa. He was found dead in a cabin by a security guard but is believed to have died 18 hours earlier. A post-mortem examination has been carried out in Italy, but the results were inconclusive.

His family are anxiously waiting for tests to confirm the cause of death. His body is now back in the UK awaiting further tests and an inquest was opened into his death by Blackburn coroner Michael Singleton yesterday. The coroner’s officer said: “It is too early to say whether Mr Johnson’s death is suspicious or not but the Italian authorities have seized the yacht as part of their ongoing inquiries.”