A truck driver who witnessed the fatal crash of Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva told Daily Mail that the Lamborghini Huracan, which could hit 200 mph, of the Liverpool forward was not over-speeding. The revelation of Jose Azevedo, the truck driver, came after initial forensic report that Jota’s car could have exceeded the speed limits on the highway, leading to a blown tyre, due to which the car lost control, rolled off the highway and burst into flames.
In a video message, he gave an account of the accident. “The family has my word that they were not speeding. I could see the make of the car, the colour of the car. I drive this road every day, Monday through Saturday,” he said.
Initially, he tried to film the accident before his conscience took over.
“I filmed it, stopped, tried to help, but unfortunately, there was nothing I could do. I have a clear conscience,” he said. I know what I went through that night because I didn’t know who was inside. My condolences to the family,” he said.
The sinuous highway along Northwestern Spain, leading to the Portugal border, is notorious for over-speeding. In 2021, nearly 15,000 cars were fined for exceeding the speed limit. “I know what road it is, and it’s worthless. It’s a dark road, and I could see the make and colour of the car, everything perfectly. Later on, unfortunately, that’s how it ended,” Azvedo said.
Just two days before Jota’s crash, a 60-year-old was killed on the same highway after her car had come off the road. In 2023, 19 road accidents occurred on the highway (A-52) with an average of 1.5 deaths per incident. A central government representative for the Zamora province has since dubbed the A-52 road as ‘very dangerous’.
According to the Spanish police, Jota was driving the car. “All the tests carried out for the moment point to the driver of the crash vehicle being Diogo Jota. Everything is also pointing to a possible high excess of speed over the permitted speed on that stretch of the motorway. Among other things, traffic police from the Zamora branch of the Civil Guard are studying the tread marked by one of the wheels of the vehicle,” they said in a statement.
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