A 50 year old Russian involved in a violent collision which killed a 27-year-old father of a small child near Limassol was discharged from hospital on Friday but is under arrest pending his appearance in court tomorrow where he is expected to be remanded in custody, philenews reports.
Panayiotis Christoforou from Ypsonas was killed instantly when a car driven by the Russian national rammed into him from behind near Moutayiaka on the Nicosia-Limassol highway at around 1 am on Thursday.
A post-mortem examination was carried out on Friday and showed horrific injuries from the violent collision – including a severed thoracic aorta, fractures in the neck and spine and multiple ruptures of the lungs. The funeral will be held tomorrow
The Russian driver was reported to have been speeding and tested five times over the alcohol limit — 111 mg rather than the legal limit of 22 mg — in an initial alco-test.
He was arrested immediately after the accident but was hospitalized for his injuries. On Friday, Limassol police obtained a second arrest warrant – this time for manslaughter – which they executed today and the case is being transferred from traffic police to Limassol CID.
Police have obtained testimony that he was driving at 200 km an hour and that other drivers had flashed their headlights at him because he was zigzagging,
A police spokesman added that they will be able to determine the exact speed from the car’s black box.
Traffic police chief Yiannakis Georgiou told Radio Active on Thursday that police would be suggesting to the attorney general that the driver be charged with manslaughter.
