Report and witnesses can nail driver

Dubai: A technical report and witness accounts will help decide whether the Pakistani driver who caused nine deaths and 56 injuries in Thursday's bus collision was speeding, Gulf News has learnt.

Dubai Police referred 25-year-old suspect, identified as H.R.M., to the Traffic Public Prosecution that started questioning him on Sunday.

"We started questioning the suspect yesterday and we have a list of 25 witnesses, who were on the bus at the time of the collision, to be questioned as well. We are also waiting for the accident's technical report, which is considered essential to decide on the charges," Salah Bou Farrousha, Head of Traffic Public Prosecution, told Gulf News.

The accident occurred last Thursday near the Mall of the Emirates on Shaikh Zayed Road where nine people died and 56 injured when a bus carrying dozens of workers collided with a mini bus and overturned on the busy road.

According to public prosecution records, the suspect has been primarily charged with causing accidental and unintentional death of victims and damaging public and private properties. There has been no mention of reckless driving yet. The same records identified two of the victims as 34-year-old Indian, B.R., and Pakistani, B.M., of the same age.

A week of questioning

"We haven't received the technical report yet, and we might need the week in full to question the witnesses," Bou Farrousha said.

According to police, the driver of the bus lost control, skidded across the wet road into the opposite lane and overturned.

A minibus carrying a group of workers crashed into the bus and its driver was killed on the spot. The bigger bus was travelling from Jebel Ali.