An elderly man died after being dragged under the car of a couple who did not realise what had happened, a court heard yesterday.

Rużarju Tonna, 70, from Valletta, was wheeling his moped along Archbishop Street, in the capital, to garage it when he was hit by a Mercedes C200 at about 2pm on December 30, 2012.

Josephine Dimech, 51, from Żebbuġ, was driving, accompanied by her husband. They had just left a restaurant.

Ms Dimech appeared before Magistrate Antonio Micallef Trigona charged with involuntary homicide, driving dangerously, at speed and relapsing.

Court-appointed traffic expert Mario Buttigieg testified that when the car hit Mr Tonna, the victim was caught by the wheels and dragged along.

Unaware of what had happened, Ms Dimech continued driving until she was told to stop by a passerby who spotted the man beneath the car.

The incident happened about 200 metres from Valletta police station and the witness recalled seeing vomit on the ground, which had come from Mr Tonna.

Police Inspector Kylie Borg said Ms Dimech and her husband had told officers they had not realised they had hit someone or that a person was under their car.

The magistrate ruled there was sufficient evidence to place Ms Dimech under a bill of indictment and put off the case to April 1.

Lawyers Lucio and Michael Sciriha appeared for the accused.