A man was indicted on Wednesday for manslaughter after the death on Sunday of a highway patrolman on the Côte d'Azur, struck by a vehicle while securing the site of another accident.
Placement in pre-trial detention was requested, indicated the Nice prosecutor's office.
On the A8 motorway, messages of “tribute to Tony”, this intervention agent from the motorway company Escota (Vinci Autoroutes) who was mowed down while working, are displayed on panels all day long.
The driver also prosecuted for “unintentional injuries”
The man was killed by "a crazy car" which hit patrol officers, gendarmes and tow truck operators who were assisting the occupants of an accident vehicle, in the town of La Turbie, Vinci Autoroute said on Sunday.
In addition to the patrolman killed, four people, two police officers, another patrolman from Escota and a repairman, were injured.
Vinci had indicated that the images demonstrated “excessive speed and dangerous driving on the part of the driver of the crazy car”.
The accused is also being prosecuted for “unintentional injuries”, indicated the prosecution.
“Respect the safety corridor”
On Tuesday, Vinci reported on the social network
When are you going to hit?
Respect the safety corridor.
»
‼️STOP‼️48 hours after the tragic accident which cost the life of one of our colleagues, a new van has just been hit on the @A8Trafic.
All the signaling devices were in place!!!
🚨When will you hit?
🚨Respect the #SafetyCorridor pic.twitter.com/fmGx5CN9Vk
— VINCI Autoroutes (@VINCIAutoroutes) March 5, 2024
It consists of leaving, when possible, a clear lane between your vehicle and that of the patrol officer.
In 2023, one highway agent was killed in France while working, compared to four in 2022, according to the Association of French Highway Companies (Asfa).
In 2023, there were 144 accidents involving highway personnel or equipment, including 18 injury accidents.
Twenty-two intervention personnel were injured.
VIDEO.
“We think about it in the back of our minds”: on the highway, patrol officers face danger
“I know very well that when I leave in the morning, I am not sure I will come home in the evening.
I'am aware.
I don’t think about it every day but it’s in the back of my mind,” confided Jérôme Prudhomme, patrol officer at Sanef, last August.
“I always have one eye on the road because even if we are vigilant, it can go very, very quickly,” he explained to Le Parisien.