Belgium: ‘It was a real carnage’ – Bus driver on drugs, who was observing Ramadan and had not eaten for 12 hours, brought to court for fatal accident

A man with French nationality, Bardad B., will stand trial in Antwerp on Monday for ‘involuntary manslaughter, involuntary bodily harm and driving under the influence of drugs’ in connection with a BlaBlaCar bus accident in which two people died in Belgium in April 2022. The suspect is facing a prison sentence.

The events date back that April 10, 2022. There were 30 travellers aged between 16 and 39 on board. After a stopover in Lille, the vehicle crosses Belgium and heads towards the Netherlands. At 11.45 a.m., the red bus with the BlaBlaCar logo is on the motorway near Antwerp. Without the involvement of an external vehicle, the bus suddenly leaves its lane, crashes into a concrete crash barrier and comes to rest on its side. Loreleï and a 29-year-old Colombian died. Ten young people were seriously injured, while several were crippled for life.

The driver was under the influence of narcotics at the time of the incident. When questioned by investigators, Bardad B. explained that he had been celebrating Ramadan and had eaten his last meal at 10 p.m. the night before. Le Figaro

Belgique. «C’était un véritable carnage» : un conducteur de bus sous stupéfiants, qui faisait le ramadan et n’avait pas mangé depuis 12 heures, jugé pour un accident mortel – Fdesouche