A Maltese man is under investigation in France for the involuntary manslaughter of a woman and her two children last weekend while allegedly driving under the influence of drugs on a motorway in the north of the country.
Last Saturday, a 42-year-old French woman named only as Laetitia and her two sons Naël and Yanis, aged eight and 10 respectively, were killed in a collision with a car driven by a 52-year-old Maltese man on the A26 motorway near Gavrelle, Pas-de-Calais.
The woman and her children were pronounced dead at the scene, while the Maltese driver was taken to Lille University Hospital with serious injuries, according to French media reports.
The Maltese man, who has not been named, was found to be under the influence of drugs and on Friday was taken into police custody on suspicion of involuntary manslaughter, French media said.
While investigations are still ongoing, initial findings suggest the Maltese driver crashed into the three victims’ vehicle from behind while travelling at a significantly faster speed, according to local media reports.
The accident occurred at around 2pm, with the road closed for around four hours, while emergency services attended the scene.
Speaking to news outlet Nord Éclair, the mayor of Vimy – the victims’ hometown – Christian Sprimont called the accident “a shock, it's a real tragedy”, adding he knew the victims and had seen the two children recently at a trophy ceremony at their school.
On Saturday morning, shops in Vimy were closed as residents holding white flowers and candles held a silent march in memory of Laetitia, Naël and Yanis, walking from the town’s stadium to the town hall and past the two boys’ school.
The march was organised by the boys' Jean-Macé school in collaboration with the APE Vimy parents’ association and the US Vimy football club attended by one of the boys killed in the crash.
One tearful 89-year-old man who joined the march said he was “devastated by what happened," while classmates of Naël and Yanis hung handwritten tributes to the pair in the town hall, reported La Voix Du Nord.
Vimy children paid tribute to their two friends and classmates. Photo: La Voix Du Nord.
Photo: La Voix Du Nord.
“Yanis, I say goodbye to you, we will miss you," read one note hanging in the town hall.
A funding page set up by the parents’ association and football club has since raised more than €17,000 for the funeral of the woman and her two children, described by the page as a “final tribute filled with dignity and serenity.”
Psychological support is being provided to workers who attended the scene of the accident, news reports said.