Three years, three months and one day in prison. This is the sentence that was accepted on Monday, following a plea agreement by a man who, driving under the influence of alcohol, caused a fatal accident on the Inca motorway on 27 August 2020, at the wheel of an uninsured Mercedes with an expired MOT. In addition to the death of a woman, the accident resulted in twelve injuries of varying degrees of severity.
The defendant will not go to prison as his sentence will be suspended for a period of five years, during which time he will not be able to commit offences, must pay 15,000 euros to the victim's relatives, continue with the treatment he is undergoing to stop drinking alcohol and also attend a road safety education programme. Before the hearing, the Insurance Compensation Consortium compensated the heirs of the deceased woman and the rest of the injured parties with more than 200,000 euros.
The accident took place at 5.15pm. The driver was under the inlfuence of alcohol, speeding at a 190kph, when the maximum speed allowed on a stretch of road under construction was 80. At kilometre point 11.5, in the municipality of Santa Maria, the accused did not notice that three vehicles were stopped on the hard shoulder after having had a minor accident. They were exchanging insurance papers. The driver collided with the three cars.
The occupants of these vehicles were injured, although the worst part was claimed by a 47-year-old woman who lost her life almost instantly due to the heavy impact of the defendant's Mercedes with the Ford Fiesta in which she was in the front passenger seat. The Guardia Civil de Tráfico carried out a breathalyser test on the man, who gave a positive result of 0.58 mg/l.