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UK prosecutors act in 2023 crash that killed Indian-origin child
The prosecution had declined to press charges in 2023, changing its stance now after new evidence was discovered by the Met Police.
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Jeffin T. Kaleekal - Mon, 04, May 2026
- 03:37 EDT
- 45
Representative image / Pexels
The U.K.’s Crown Prosecution Service charged Claire Freemantle with nine offenses, years after she allegedly mowed down eight-year-olds, Indian-origin Nuria Sajjad and her classmate, Selena Lau, the CPS announced May 1.
Sajjad was fatally hit by Freemantle’s car after the latter lost control of the vehicle following a reported epileptic fit. The car crashed through a fence at Study Preparatory School in Wimbledon, southwest London, in 2023.
A year later, in 2024, the CPS had refused to press charges against the driver.
Modifying its earlier position, the CPS announced that it now has sufficient evidence to bring the case to court, noting that it is in the public interest to pursue criminal proceedings.
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Freemantle has been charged with two offenses of causing death by dangerous driving and seven offenses of causing serious injury by dangerous driving.
The decision was taken after the Metropolitan Police reopened its investigation into the collision and passed on “significant new evidence” to the CPS.
David Malone, Deputy Chief Crown Prosecutor for London North, described the 2023 incident as a “tragic incident” and said the department’s “thoughts remain with the families of Nuria and Selena for their devastating loss, and to those seriously injured and otherwise affected by the collision.”
Malone also noted that the CPS worked in close collaboration with the Metropolitan Police in its second investigation, while acknowledging the incident’s “profound impact on the wider community.”
Nuria’s mother, Smera Chohan, who was also injured in the crash, along with her father, Sajjad Butt, were among those demanding answers over the prolonged delays in the investigation.
The incident occurred when students and their families were celebrating the end of term on the school grounds, and a car suddenly drove into the gathering.
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