ANP Productions | Source: ANP
Today at 03:55
Rotterdam
30-year-old Suraj A. from The Hague will stand trial on Tuesday for the fatal accident that killed three people in Rotterdam on Boxing Day 2022. The Public Prosecution Service suspects him of driving under the influence and also of running a red light at far too high speed.
The accident took place in the early morning at Groene Kruisplein, a major traffic intersection in South Rotterdam with an exit from the A15 motorway. The accident killed a 35-year-old woman from Spijkenisse, a 36-year-old man from Helmond and a 7-year-old girl, also from Spijkenisse.
According to the criminal complaint, the suspect ran a red light and crashed into the victims’ car at a high rate of speed. He is said to have drunk three times the legal amount of alcohol. “The young family didn’t stand a chance,” the prosecutor said earlier.
In May last year, the Public Prosecution Service reconstructed the accident with driving tests during the night. Based on the reconstruction and an analysis of the data from traffic loops in the road, the Public Prosecution Service believes that the suspect drove a minimum of 134 kilometers and a maximum of 170 kilometers per hour. The data analysis by the Netherlands Forensic Institute (NFI) also showed that the suspect must have driven even slightly faster in the hundreds of meters before the crash.
A. himself was seriously injured by the collision, underwent several operations and had to recuperate for a long time. He says he cannot remember anything about the accident. At a previous hearing, his counsel read a letter of apology from him to the family’s relatives.
