A truck driver who filmed the aftermath of Diogo Jota’s car crash has claimed the Liverpool footballer was not speeding, despite a preliminary police report saying he was.
Listen to this article
Jota and his younger brother Andre Silva died in a car crash after the lime green £185,000 Lamborghini they were travelling in burst into flames following a suspected tyre blowout last Thursday in Zamora, Spain.
A spokesperson for the Guardia Civil of Zamora said Jota was driving the car at the time and was thought to be travelling above the speed limit on the road, which local media report is 120kmph (74mph).
Jose Azevedo, a Portuguese truck driver who was travelling along the A-52 when he saw the burning Lamborghini, has however claimed Jota did not appear to be speeding.
He filmed the car on fire as he approached the brothers in his truck, adding he tried to put out the flames.
“The truck driver, which was me, filmed it, stopped, grabbed the fire extinguisher and tried to help. I tried to help but due to the impact of the accident, there was nothing I could do, absolutely nothing,” Azevedo said in a video.
“They passed me completely calmly and were not speeding. You have my word they weren’t speeding. They were completely relaxed.
“I drive this road Monday through Saturday and I know it’s a terrible place. It’s a dark road. I could see the make and colour of the car.
“I offer my sincere condolences. I have a clear conscience, I know what I saw. Unfortunately, that’s how it ended. I stopped filming, tried to help, but unfortunately, there was nothing I could do.”
A second witness – a truck driver named locally as Jose Alex Duarte – told Portuguese tabloid Correio da Manha he was overtaken by Jota’s car five minutes before the accident and it was going at a “moderate speed”.
Spain’s Guardia Civil said the “expert” report is still in the process of being finalised.
