Manslaughter charges have been filed against a man for the death of a British five-year old girl who was learning to ski in France Alps.
Since Saturday, the suspect aged 40, was held in Bonnevile in eastern France.
It was then that witnesses watched him skiing ‘at high speed’ over ‘a slight bump’ and then colliding with the little child, who has been named locally only as Ophélie.
She was taking a lesson on a Blue beginners’ slope in the resort of Flaine, in France’s eastern Haute-Savoie department.
‘The skier involved in the death has been indicted for manslaughter,’ said an investigating source.
Five-year-old daughter died when a skier crashed into her in Flaine, France’s ski resort. Photo: The GV at Flaine Resort
It happened in Flaine, a ski resort in Haute-Savoie in the French Alps.
‘He has been placed under judicial control and is specifically accused of a deliberate violation of safety obligations’ the source added.
The crime is punishable with up to five years in prison, and a fine equivalent to £62,000.
This information was confirmed by Karline Bouisset, the public prosecutor in Bonneville, who also said that the man, a volunteer fire fighter, had been ‘skiing at high speed’.
She added that a dozen people, including direct witnesses to the tragedy, have been interviewed ‘at length’ since Saturday.
While the boy and girl had been skiin together, the skier tried first aid but the little girl died in the helicopter on her way to a hospital.
Ophélie lived with her British parents in Geneva, and they also own a holiday home in Les Carroz, another Alpine ski resort.
The children were on the Serpentine Blue run, and in a group lesson run by France’s ESF national ski school.
Ms Bouisset said: ‘The child was in a single file behind the group and was about to make a right turn when she was very violently hit by the skier arriving at high speed who tried in vain to avoid her.’
Jean-Paul Constant, the Mayor of nearb Arâches, said: ‘We are actively looking for a psychologist who speaks English for the family, who have returned to Geneva.
‘They are suffering from extreme shock, as are many others involved in this tragedy.’
Saint-Jeoire was the source of this criminal suspect and he has offered his complete cooperation to authorities.
The cause of death was to be determined by a post-mortem on Monday. However, the results have not yet been published.
A few resorts have implemented speed cameras as well as hand-held radar devices to help reduce the number of accidents on ski slopes. While the speed limit has been set at just 30kph (a little less than 19 mph), it is expected that speeds will be much lower on more difficult slopes.