Spain ex-rail boss charged over crash that killed 80

A former safety official for Spain’s state railway operator has been charged with homicide over a 2013 train derailment that left 80 people dead, according to a judicial ruling released Monday.

Previously the train driver was the only person facing criminal charges over the tragedy in July 2013 when a train left the track on a sharp bend while travelling at double the speed limit, near Santiago de Compostela in northern Spain.

Andres Maria Cortabitarte, who was safety director at state rail management company Adif at the time of the crash, has now been charged “as allegedly responsible for crimes of homicide and injuries through serious negligence,” a judge ruled in a decision made public on Monday.

“There is sufficient indication that, as far as Adif is concerned, not everything possible was done to reduce the risks,” the judge said in his decision dated March 10.

A previous judicial decision, in 2014, not to prosecute Adif officials angered relatives of the crash victims and the enquiry was reopened last year.