Spain Train Driver Held on Suspicion of Homicide

Formal charges of reckless homicide could follow soon
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 27, 2013 8:12 AM CDT

The driver in this week's deadly train accident in Spain is now out of the hospital and being held by police on suspicion of reckless homicide, reports CNN. Formal charges against Francisco Jose Garzon Amo could follow soon. The nation's interior minister told reporters there were "rational indications" that driver error is to blame for the accident, which killed 78 people, including one American.

He didn't go into details, but video shows the train unable to navigate a curve in the tracks, and the 52-year-old Garzon had previously boasted that he loved to disregard speed limits when at the controls. Garzon has refused to answer police questions, reports the Guardian, and a judge is expected to question him next before determining whether to press charges. In the immediate aftermath of the crash, Spanish media quoted Garzon as blaming himself and saying, "I want to die." (More train crash stories.)

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