Police identify dead wreck diver

All diving on the wreck has been suspended

A Jersey man who died while diving at the wreck of an Elizabethan gunship near Alderney has been identified.

Peter Le Sauteur, who was 55, died after surfacing from a dive on Sunday. He had been working on a survey of the wreck, as part of a salvage operation.

All diving on the wreck has been suspended until an investigation into his death is completed. A post-mortem examination will be held on Wednesday.

Police are working closely with Guernsey's Health and Safety Executive.

A UK Home Office pathologist with experience in diving incidents is due to arrive in Guernsey and will be carrying out post-mortem tests.

Military cargo

Mr Le Sauter was working on the survey as part of an Alderney Maritime Trust operation to recover two cannon from the vessel.

Marine archaeologists started the excavation work in May.

The ship went down off Alderney, which is 23 miles away from Guernsey and the third largest of the Channel Islands, in 1592.

It was carrying a military cargo when it sank and was discovered by a fisherman in 1977.

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