Boy, 5, killed in London after electric car allegedly 'moved on its own accord', prosecution claims driver pressed accelerator by mistake

A five-year-old boy died after being struck by an electric vehicle that allegedly accelerated “on its own accord” while parked outside a flat in south London, a court has heard.

The trial at the Old Bailey concerns Ashenafei Demisse, 52, who denies causing death and serious injury by careless or inconsiderate driving in the incident, which seriously injured his own son and killed the child of a family friend.

The incident

The court was told that Demisse was sitting inside his Volkswagen EV in a car park close to London Bridge station, in November 2022, when the vehicle suddenly “accelerated rapidly”, reported The Times.

Fareed Amir, five, was walking home from primary school with his mother, Maryam Lemulu.

Lemulu had stopped to speak with Demisse’s wife, Yodit Samuel, who was accompanied by her 12-year-old son, Raphael, the jury heard.

From inside the vehicle, Demisse offered Fareed a treat, which his mother declined as she was trying to reduce his sugar intake.

Moments later, the car reportedly lurched forward, striking both boys and crashing into five other parked cars before coming to a stop.

Child died from multiple traumatic injuries

Lemulu carried her son to nearby Guy’s Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead from multiple traumatic injuries, including a fractured skull.

Raphael sustained multiple fractures to his right leg as well as a fractured left leg and spent four weeks in hospital recovering from his injuries.

In a statement read to the court, Lemulu recalled her son calling out to Demisse moments before the collision:

“Uncle Ash, uncle Ash.”

Lemulu also told the court, according to the Daily Mail, that she did not hear any sound from the car’s engine before it moved.

She said:

“The car suddenly moved forward. It did not make any noise. It took off very fast.

“It hit Fareed on the side and I saw his hand go slowly down the car.”

Electric car “moved on its own accord”

Stephen Knight, defending, told jurors that Demisse did not press the accelerator and that the all-electric vehicle moved without any driver input.

“Mr Demisse did not press the car’s accelerator. This all-electric car moved on its own accord.”

The prosecution rejected that claim, saying a police investigation found no evidence of a fault in the 2021-registered car.

Michael Williams, prosecuting, told the court the vehicle could only have moved forward as a result of driver input and had reached “near maximum speed” with no evidence of braking.

He said the case involved pedal misapplication, in which a driver mistakenly believes they are pressing the brake when their foot is in fact on the accelerator.

Trial continues

The court also heard in a statement from Demisse’s wife that he had worked as a taxi driver for many years and had been working seven days a week at the time of the incident.

She added:

“I don’t recall any engine sounds or revving.”

Samuel said she considered Fareed’s mother “like a sister” and expressed sorrow over the incident.

“What happened is a tragedy and I feel very sorry for her.”

The trial is ongoing.

Top images via Volkswagen, Canva