The court extended the detention of a driver who hit a pedestrian in Mokotów in August and hit people standing at a bus stop. Two women died in the accident and several other people were injured. The investigation – according to the prosecutor's office – is in its final phase.
On August 13, on a straight section of Woronicza, an SUV driver first hit a woman crossing the road correctly, and then drove into a stop where a group of people were waiting for a bus.
The life of the pedestrian who was hit could not be saved, and the second seriously injured woman also died on the way to the hospital. Rescuers provided assistance to other injured people at the scene of the accident, four of them were taken to hospital, including a 3.5-year-old child.
Extended detention for the driver
After the accident, the 45-year-old driver was charged with unintentionally causing a road accident, which is punishable by six months to eight years in prison. The man was imprisoned for three months.
– The prosecutor's office requested an extension of pre-trial detention – says prosecutor Piotr Skiba from the District Prosecutor's Office in Warsaw. – The District Court in Warsaw, in its decision of November 6, 2024, extended the application of the preventive measure for a further period of two months – adds Skiba.
According to information provided by the prosecutor's office, investigators are still waiting for the opinion of an expert in the field of road accident reconstruction and forensic medicine, and the proceedings themselves are “in their final phase.”
He exceeded the speed limit and had a previous conviction
The arrested 45-year-old had previously been convicted of causing a road accident, as a result, he lost his driving license. – In February this year, he regained his driving license – said prosecutor Piotr Skiba in August. At the time of the accident in Woronicza, the driver “was neither under the influence of drugs nor alcohol.”
The incident was recorded by a camera from a public transport bus. The recording and eyewitness accounts show that the driver significantly exceeded the speed limit. The question of how fast the vehicle was moving will be answered by an expert who will analyze, among others, data from sensors in the vehicle and traces secured by police officers at the scene of the accident.
They introduced a speed limit
“This accident was large and fatal, but every day drivers do not follow the regulations and smaller collisions happen. And then there will be an accident, or someone will not be able to brake in time or will fall on a scooter. There is a two-lane straight section, two crossings for pedestrians and no traffic lights. I'm afraid to walk there,” one of the residents wrote to us on Kontakt24 right after the accident.
In an audit commissioned by the town hallthe crossing to Woronicza has been indicated as dangerous since 2017. The authors of the document warned that pedestrians had to cross many lanes, and drivers exceeded the speed limit, posing a threat.
Only after the August accident, within two weeks, were signs with a speed limit of 30 km/h and speed bumps installed at the crossing.
Main photo source: Olek Klekocki/tvnwarszawa.pl