Two pedestrians die after being hit by car

SHARJAH // Two men died and another remains in critical condition after a young unlicensed driver lost control of his car and crashed into the three pedestrians in the Julfa area of Ajman. The accident happened at 7.30pm on Sunday, when the three men were walking home after attending an iftar in a Ramadan tent. The Emirati driver, identified as SM, 18, was in his brother's car when he lost control and ran over the three men, said Col Obaid Humaid al Matroushi the director of operations at Ajman police.

"One man died on the spot," he said. "Another died on the way to the hospital and the third is fighting for his life in Sheikh Khalifa Hospital." Police say that after the accident, S M fled but later returned with his brother, the licensed owner of the car. According to Col al Matroushi, he asked his brother to say he had been driving to avoid getting into trouble for driving without a licence.

"But when we started interrogating [the older brother] about the accident and reminded him of its severity, he retracted all his statements and told police it was his brother's fault," Col al Matroushi said. "We have both of them [in custody] and are still investigating." "The older brother could serve between three to six months for lying to defend his brother," said the lawyer Mohiudin Ahmed. He added that SM would perhaps have to pay Dh200,000 in blood money, pay for the treatment of the third victim and serve a prison term of six months to a year if convicted.

The victims were LM, 24, Indian, SS, 30, Nepalese, and SM, 27, Bangladeshi. A hospital spokesman said yesterday that SM was still in intensive care but was improving. He said he suffered a brain haemorrhage and several fractures. In another accident, the Pakistani MAA, 40, died in Fujairah after his motorcycle hit a car on Masafi Road. The director of Masafi Police Station, Lt Saeed Rashid al Hamoudi, said the motorcyclist had an expired driving licence that had not been renewed since 2007.

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