The man suspected of having killed four elderly people at the wheel of his car Monday morning in Steenbecque (North) was indicted for
“involuntary homicide by driver”
, the Dunkirk public prosecutor announced on Wednesday.
The driver of the vehicle, aged 51, had consumed neither alcohol nor narcotics but
“numerous investigative actions remain to be carried out (...), in particular on the drowsiness alleged by the driver and on the exact speed of his vehicle at the time of the collision
,” writes prosecutor Charlotte Huet in a press release.
Placed under judicial supervision following two days of police custody, the driver is prohibited from driving a vehicle.
He faces up to five years of imprisonment and a fine of 75,000 euros.
The accident occurred early Monday morning on a road whose dangerousness had already been denounced in the past by the residents of Steenbecque, a village of 1,700 inhabitants a few kilometers from Pas-de-Calais.
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Dozing off while driving
Three of the victims died at the scene of the accident: a 77-year-old woman and a couple (a 70-year-old man and a 69-year-old woman).
A 70-year-old woman died later at the Lille hospital center, a few hours after being transported there in critical condition.
The driver explained to investigators that he had dozed off at the wheel, Dunkirk sub-prefect François-Xavier Bieuville said Monday morning.
Two of the victims came from Steenbecque, and two others from the neighboring village of Morbecque, the sub-prefect said.