Titanic sub CEO’s ‘predatory’ hunt for rich clients revealed by insider

The CEO killed on his own Titanic sub could be incredibly persuasive getting rich people to support his dangerous deep-sea missions, an insider says.

OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush was on a “predatory” hunt for wealthy clientele to support his costly deep-sea submersible trips to the Titanic, according to an industry expert.

Mr Rush — who was one of five passengers killed when the vessel suffered a catastrophic implosion — could be incredibly persuasive when it came to his dangerous diving missions, even somehow convincing French Titanic expert Paul-Henri Nargeolet, Patrick Lahey, president of Triton Submarines, told the Times, the New York Post reports.

“He could even convince someone who knew and understood the risks … it was really quite predatory,” Mr Lahey, who was friends with Nargeolet, told the Times.

Titan victims (left to right, top to bottom): Hamish Harding, Stockton Rush, Paul-Henri Nargeolet, and Suleman Dawood with his father Shahzada Dawood. Picture: Various sources/AFP

OceanGate Inc. founder and CEO Stockton Rush was one of the victims. Picture: OceanGate

Mr Lahey, whose company is a leading manufacturer and has been involved in the creation and testing of 60 human-rated submersibles, says he warned Mr Nargeolet, 77, before he decided to join the doomed dive last week.

“I told him in very candid terms why he shouldn’t be out there. He understood. I believe PH (Paul-Henri Nargeolet) thought in some way that by being out there, he could help these guys avoid a tragedy, but instead he ended up in the middle of one,” Mr Lahey said.

“I told PH that going out there in some way sanctioned this operation. I said: ‘You’re becoming an ambassador for this thing; people look at you and your record and the life you lead and things you’ve done, which are extraordinary, and in some ways you are legitimatizing what (OceanGate) are doing’.”

Mr Lahey had warned Mr Nargeolet that the OceanGate CEO had previously brushed off safety concerns, going as far as calling the Titan a “monstrosity” built with outdated and unpredictable parts.

Mr Lahey said he’s received messages from others he had warned against going on the OceanGate expedition, thanking him.

Rush shows off the inside of the Titan submersible in a CBS interview. Picture: CBS Sunday Morning

Rush founded OceanGate in 2009 with hopes of advancing submersible technology and taking travellers into the darkest depths of the ocean. Picture: Jason Redmond/AFP

After hearing what happened to the vessel, “I sat here with my wife and daughter and we just wept and wept,” he said.

Others had echoed Mr Lahey’s concerns, including Rob McCallum, a consultant for OceanGate, who told Mr Rush he was putting the lives of his passengers at risk by not having his submersible certified by third parties.

Rush ultimately shot down the concerns, slamming safety warnings about the craft as “baseless cries” and a “personal insult.”

Also aboard the doomed submersible were British explorer Hamish Harding, 58, Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood, 48, and his son Suleman, 19.

This article originally appeared on the New York Post and was reproduced with permission