Spain’s Interior Minister Jorge Fernandez Diaz says the driver of a speeding train that derailed last Wednesday killing nearly 80 people, faces “reckless homicide” charges.
"There are reasonable grounds to consider that he may have been responsible for what happened, which must be established by a judge and the investigation which has been opened," Fernandez Diaz said on Saturday. The 52 year old Jose Garzon Amo was detained on Thursday and held under police guard at the hospital where he received treatment for his injuries.
Officials say he refused to answer police questions, while at the hospital.
He was then taken to a police station after being discharged from the hospital, on Saturday.
Under Spanish law, a suspect can be held for a maximum of 72 hours before being heard by a judge. According to authorities, a judge will question the driver on Sunday.
The train crash took place on Wednesday, July 24, in the northwestern city of Santiago de Compostela, claiming the lives of 78 people and leaving 178 others injured.
Doctors are still trying to identify the last three victims of the crash.
Shortly after the derailment, the driver told railway officials by radio that he had taken a curve in the road at 190 kilometers (118 miles) per hour. The speed he was traveling was twice the speed limit on the section of the track.
According to state railway company, Renfe, the train had no technical problems and had been inspected on the morning of the accident.
The train was transporting 218 passengers and five crewmembers from Madrid to the shipbuilding city of Ferrol on the Galician coast.
SZH/SS
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