The Titan submersible, which was heading deep into the Atlantic Ocean to explore the wreckage of the Titanic, imploded mid-voyage, killing all five of its crew. One of them was the British billionaire Hamish Harding. His stepson Brian Szasz, who said he was living a "nightmare," has been embroiled in several controversies over the past week.
Szasz is 37 years old and is the son of Linda Harding, widow of the deceased billionaire. The young man in question presents himself on Instagram as an audio engineer who lives in the city of San Diego, California. The Los Angeles Times reported that Szasz suffers from type 1 diabetes and has an autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
His name began to resonate on June 19, when he himself referred to the issue of the OceanGate mini-submarine for the first time. This company made tourist trips to the bottom of the ocean with the idea of seeing the vestiges of the historic transatlantic cruise ship, sunk after colliding with an iceberg in 1912.
At that time, in addition to lamenting the news of the disappearance of the bathyscaphe in which his 58-year-old stepfather was traveling, Szasz uploaded a photo of himself to Facebook: he was posing at a Blink-182 band recital, which was held out that same day. This attitude of the young man aroused strong criticism.
"My stepdad Hamish is in a submarine lost at sea. I'm devastated, but I'm going to the concert in San Diego tonight so you guys can give me hope and cheer me up," he asked his Facebook followers.
"It may be unpleasant to be here, but my family would like me to be at the Blink-182 concert, since it is my favorite group and music helps me in difficult moments," Szasz added in the post on the social network. Some time later, he ended up deleting the post amid strong criticism from users.
On June 22, the same date on which the sad outcome of the five crew members was known, Szasz again gave something to talk about: according to the Yahoo news website, the billionaire's stepson began to argue on Twitter with the American singer Cardi B: she had criticized him for exposing himself in that way.
"Her career is in turmoil, she needs to feed off other people's suffering. She told me 'He's not going to help, blah blah blah, he's going to a rock concert, this and that, try to use the situation to be on the news.... They don't feel sorry that my mom has to take care of two kids, they don't give a shit that my stepdad... There's a 99% chance that he's dead. We're sorry," Szasz accused Cardi B, before deactivating her Twitter account.
The American artist picked up the glove and replied: "The point was that the whole world is praying for these people in the submarine and this man son is on the internet showing his private parts to the girls of OnlyFans and on top of that he is going to see Blink- 182. You were looking for fame the whole time, no one knew who you were until you said (Harding) was your stepdad!!! This is why people hate you, bratty billionaire brats like you, very desensitized."
When Cardi B mentioned OnlyFans, she wanted to refer to the conversation that Szasz had had on Twitter with a content creator of that page.
"Can I sit on top of you?" This OnlyFans woman asked her followers with a double meaning. And the billionaire's stepson replied: "Yes, please." This entire exchange was made public, while the search for the Titan submarine was still going on.
On the other hand, the Los Angeles Times reported - citing legal documents - that Szasz was detained by authorities on June 30, 2021 "in connection with online harassment charges filed against him...". A year later, according to the same outlet, the young man filed a lawsuit against San Diego County for "negligence, intentional infliction of emotional distress and assault."
On Wednesday, nearly a week after authorities announced a "catastrophic implosion" had killed the five men aboard the minivan-sized submarine, huge pieces of the ill-fated Titan were hoisted off a Canadian dock. , according to the company that led the operation and photos of the task.
It was not immediately clear which pieces these are. The Titan was made of carbon fiber and titanium and weighed 10 tons, with room for just five adults, according to OceanGate, which operated the vessel as part of its offer to get extreme tourists up close to the hundred-year-old wreck of the Titanic for US$ 250,000 per person.
Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood was traveling in the minisubmarine with his son Suleman, a 19-year-old student; British billionaire and explorer Hamish Harding; the French explorer Paul-Henry Nargeolet and the CEO of the firm OceanGate, Stockton Rush.
