Father of two dies in hit-and-run incident
Motorist to face manslaughter charge
A young man from Mosta is expected to be arraigned, possibly today, to face charges of manslaughter and negligent driving after a jogger died in a hit-and-run incident in Mosta early yesterday morning.
Emmanuel Formosa, a 59-year-old father of two, also of Mosta, died as he was jogging close to the Flower Power Garden Centre, in Triq Durumblat, sometime between 6 and 7 a.m. yesterday.
The police were informed about the body through an anonymous telephone call. When they went on site, they found Mr Formosa's body in a field by the side of the road.
Apparently, Mr Formosa was flung over the low boundary wall and into a field lying just over a metre below street level.
They also found evidence that suggested Mr Formosa had been hit by a car. The body had extensive head injuries and the man is believed to have died on impact.
It is understood that, some time later, a 25- year-old man from Mosta went to the Police Headquarters in Floriana to report the incident. The motorist had apparently just dropped his girlfriend in Fgura and was on his way home when the incident occurred.
It is believed that the motorist, who was driving from the direction of Attard towards Mosta, realised something had gone wrong when Mr Formosa was hit but did not realise he had run over a man. He told the police he stopped and looked around and, seeing nothing untoward, went back in his car and drove home, sources said.
Mr Formosa was jogging on the other side of the road, also in the direction of Mosta, and it appears he was hit from behind.
Legal sources told The Times that when an accident involving a motor vehicle is involved, the driver is in duty bound to stop and give his particulars to the police or the other party.
Sources who saw a Daihatsu being removed by a police tow truck from Mosta early yesterday afternoon said the windscreen was smashed, apart from other damage.
An autopsy is scheduled to be held today to establish the man's cause of death.
District Superintendent Antonello Grech and CID Superintendent Pierre Calleja investigated the case together with Inspectors Christopher Pullicino, Daniel Zammit and Therese Sciberras.
Forensic physician Mario Scerri was appointed as an expert to assist in the inquiry.