Retracing Diogo Jota's tragic journey shows road plagued with hazards from shut lanes to wild deer ready to leap out
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DIOGO Jota's fateful last journey was fraught with hazards which could have contributed to the car smash tragedy - including wild deer on the highway.
The Sun retraced the route from the crash scene and found the A-52 highway poorly surfaced and dogged by miles of roadworks leading to the death smash scene.
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The Scene of the car crash on the A52 highway outside Puebla de Sanabria, Spain,
Credit: Darren Fletcher
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Wreckage of the £210,000 Lamborghini Huracan at the tragic crash site
Credit: Getty
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Liverpool FC star Jota, 28, died alongside his brother André, 25
Credit: Shutterstock Editorial
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And we encountered two adult deer standing on a side road less than half a mile from the spot where the Liverpool ace's Lamborghini veered off the road and burst into flames.
What we know so far:
Jota was driving with his younger brother Andre in a hired £210,000 Lamborghini Huracan supercar from Portugal to the northern Spanish port of Santander.
But as soon as he crossed the border, his progress would have been slowed by at least 10 miles of road works.
His acid green Lamorghini left the highway a few minutes' drive after the end of a section of roadworks at 12.40pm local time on Thursday (11.40pm on Wednesday in the UK).
The speed limit on the section where the car crashed is 120kph - 74.5mph.
Spanish Guardia Civil investigators believe a tyre blowout could account for its fatal change of direction.
But deer could have also triggered a sudden swerve and are a constant hazard throughout this wild, forested region - as attested by warning signs along the route.
Spanish police said they were not actively considering the involvement of wild animals in the smash yesterday, but did not rule out the possibility.
'Heartbroken' Ronaldo leads tributes to Diogo Jota as football mourns Liverpool & Portugal star
Other animal hazards reported to have caused accidents in the area have included Iberian wolves roaming the carriageway and flocks of crows.
The Sun has also found that the stretch of the A-52 motorway where tragedy struck has generated more than 40 complaints about the poor condition of the road in just one month last year.
Potholes were worse on the Sanabria section, near the 65km marker point - the exact spot where the Jota car crashed.
A string of complaints to the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, responsible for maintaining the road, triggered urgent roadworks.
And at least one of the complaints was said to relate to a "damage accident" involving a private vehicle in which a Spanish family was travelling, three miles from the Jota smash.
Spanish police were continuing to investigate the cause of the fatal crash last night after taking away the unrecognisable remains of the burned-out sports car.
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Sun Man Nick Parker at The Scene of the car crash on the A52 highway outside Puebla de Sanabria, Spain
Credit: Darren Fletcher
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Rute Cardoso and Diogo Jota got married on June 22
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Two hearses from Portugal arrive at the funeral home in the Spanish town of Puebla de Sanabria
Credit: AFP
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Jota pictured with Cristiano Ronaldo while playing for Portugal
Credit: Getty
It comes as Jota's funerals began today, with close friends and family gathering to mourn the loss of the champion footballer.
Jota's grieving wife was consoled by relatives amid emotional scenes at his funeral chapel today.
Rute Cardoso - who married the Liverpool ace just 11 days earlier - arrived at Sao Cosme Chapel in his home town of Gondomar near Porto, northern Portugal, early this morning.
Local priest Jose Manuel Macedo initially announced the ceremonies would take place at 4pm on Friday before confirming they had been put back to Saturday morning.
Father Macedo said a wake would take place at Sao Cosme Chapel before the funeral mass on Saturday morning at the Catholic church next door - the Igreja Matriz de Gondomar.
Diogo Jota began his footballing career at a club in Gondomar and is also thought to have met his wife there.
In Portugal, wakes are usually held before the funeral service.
Crowds began gathering on Thursday night near the chapel - the Capela da Ressurreicao on the outskirts of Porto - and applauded as the brothers coffins arrived at 11.30pm.
Tributes have been flooding in since the horrific news, including from Jota's Portugal teammate Cristiano Ronaldo, former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp and current Reds boss Arne Slot.
Ronaldo said on Instagram: "It doesn't make sense. Just now we were together in the selection, you had gotten married now.
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"To your family, your wife and your children, I send my condolences and wish you all the strength in the world.
"I know you will always be with them. Rest in Peace, Diogo and André. We will all miss you."
Lionel Messi posted a touching image of Jota making a heart symbol with his hands with the message "QEPD" - short for the Spanish phrase "que en paz descanse" which translates to "may he rest in peace".
Liverpool's number nine, Darwin Nunez, shared an image of a beaming Jota coming on as a substitute for the Uruguayan last season.
The star striker said he will always remember Jota for his smile.
Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has shared his own statement on his "great friend".
The German, who signed Jota from Wolves for £45m in 2020, said on social media: "This is a moment where I struggle! There must be a bigger purpose, but I can't see it."
He continued: "Diogo was not only a fantastic player, but also a great friend, a loving and caring husband and father.
"We will miss you so much. All my prayers, thoughts and power to Rute, the kids, the family, the friends and everyone who loved them."
Fellow Liverpool icons such as Jamie Carragher, Steven Gerrard, Robbie Fowler and David James have all also paid their respects.
Carragher posted on Instagram: 'Absolutely devastated by the sad news about Diogo Jota. Thoughts are with his wife Rute and their three kids.'
UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer added that Jota's death is "devastating news".
He told reporters today: "I'm sure I speak for everyone in saying our first thoughts are going to be with his family and his friends in particular.
"But there are millions of Liverpool fans, but also football fans, and non-fans, who will also be shocked by this."
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The two little boys' brother - Child O - had died the previous day, and Letby would also be later convicted of his killing. In her notes regarding Child P, Letby would retrospectively write for 8am, over an hour prior to the collapse: 'Abdomen full. Loops visible. Soft to touch.' Advertisement The prosecution claimed this entry was fabricated to 'create an illusion of the ongoing problem', which hadn't been present during checks at 6.40am the same morning or the previous evening. In their closing speech, prosecutors said: 'If [Child P] really did have an issue at 8 o'clock that morning, we suggest that Lucy Letby would have escalated it immediately, given what had happened to [Child O] the previous day. 'But she didn't escalate it because there wasn't a problem. There was nothing to escalate.' During her own cross examination on day 126 of her trial on June 8 2023, Letby was told Child P was found by Dr Ukoh to be in a 'very different condition' at 9.35am to his sudden collapse at 9.40am, to which she agreed. 9 A court sketch of Letby during her trial at Manchester Crown Court last year Credit: PA Advertisement 9 Letby during her police interview in 2018 Credit: Derbyshire Constabulary 9 Prof Richard Gill is convinced Letby is innocent The prosecutor added: 'The only conceivable reason for that, I'm suggesting, is because you sabotaged him.' Letby answered: 'No.' The prosecution went on to accuse Letby of again 'falsifying the notes' to make Child P 'look worse', when she wrote the infant 'had an apnoea/brady/desat with mottled appearance' which required 'facial oxygen and Neopuff'. Advertisement Prosecutors argued this was referring to the baby's condition just 10 minutes before the collapse and before Dr Ukoh's initial examination. They argued Letby tried to create the impression in her note that the Neopuff - a machine which pumps air into the lungs - caused the baby's abdomen to distend causing the diaphragm to fatally splint. In reality, they claimed the nurse had injected a fatal amount of air via the child's feeding tube, almost immediately after Dr Ukoh turned his back. But Letby claimed that particular note was actually describing Child P's condition during the subsequent resuscitation at 9.40am, during which all parties agreed the Neopuff machine was used. The charges Letby has been convicted of in full Child A, allegation of murder. The Crown said Letby injected air intravenously into the bloodstream of the baby boy. COUNT 1 GUILTY. Child B, allegation of attempted murder. The Crown said Letby attempted to murder the baby girl, the twin sister of Child A, by injecting air into her bloodstream. COUNT 2 GUILTY. Child C, allegation of murder. Prosecutors said Letby forced air down a feeding tube and into the stomach of the baby boy. COUNT 3 GUILTY. Child D, allegation of murder. The Crown said air was injected intravenously into the baby girl. COUNT 4 GUILTY. Child E, allegation of murder. The Crown said Letby murdered the twin baby boy with an injection of air into the bloodstream and also deliberately caused bleeding to the infant. COUNT 5 GUILTY. Child F, allegation of attempted murder. Letby was said by prosecutors to have poisoned the twin brother of Child E with insulin. COUNT 6 GUILTY. Child I, allegation of murder. The prosecution said Letby killed the baby girl at the fourth attempt and had given her air and overfed her with milk. COUNT 12 GUILTY. Child K, allegation of attempted murder. The prosecution said Letby compromised the baby girl as she deliberately dislodged a breathing tube. COUNT 14 JURY COULD NOT REACH VERDICT AT ORIGINAL TRIAL, NOW GUILTY AFTER RETRIAL Child L, allegation of attempted murder. The Crown said the nurse poisoned the twin baby boy with insulin. COUNT 15 GUILTY. Child M, allegation of attempted murder. Prosecutors said Letby injected air into the bloodstream of Child L's twin brother. COUNT 16 GUILTY. Child N, three allegations of attempted murder. The Crown said Letby inflicted trauma in the baby boy's throat and also injected him with air in the bloodstream. COUNT 17 GUILTY, COUNT 18 JURY COULD NOT REACH VERDICT, COUNT 19 JURY COULD NOT REACH VERDICT. Child O, allegation of murder. Prosecutors say Letby attacked the triplet boy by injecting him with air, overfeeding him with milk and inflicting trauma to his liver with "severe force". COUNT 20 GUILTY. Child P, allegation of murder. Prosecutors said the nurse targeted the triplet brother of Child O by overfeeding him with milk, injecting air and dislodging his breathing tube. COUNT 21 GUILTY. Child Q, allegation of attempted murder. The Crown said Letby injected the baby boy with liquid, and possibly air, down his feeding tube. COUNT 22 JURY COULD NOT REACH VERDICT During her defence team's closing statements, they brought up the prosecution's confused timeline, which had altered multiple times. 'It's like a game of chess with check, check, check, moving around. It's not the night before, okay, now it's the night before,' Letby's team's closing statement said, mockingly. Advertisement 'Well, it can't be that morning because he's examined by Dr Ukoh at 9.35. 'Hmm, no, it can't be. Ah, what's happened is, in the 10 minutes after that, the baby has splinted his diaphragm.' Dr Evans, in his pre-trial reports, concluded that seven babies Letby was accused of either murdering or attempting to murder had been harmed by injecting air into them causing dangerous air embolism. He believed either air had been injected into their stomachs via the tiny feeding tube newborns have inserted through their nose, or into their bloodstream through various lines and catheters. In regards to the feeding tube, there is much debate as to whether such an act would kill a baby. Advertisement In July last year, eight separate expert clinicians, specialising in neonatology, told the Guardian the theory was nonsensical, or 'rubbish', 'ridiculous', 'implausible' and "fantastical". Dr Evans admitted after the trial: 'It was a phenomenon I had never encountered previously.' Prof Gill told The Sun: 'People who know about these things say it is physically impossible. 'You could put any amount of air you liked into a baby's stomach and they will burp it out. 'It is not going to blow up their stomachs like a balloon and split their diaphragm, leading to collapse.' Advertisement He added: 'The allegation was changed to air was possibly injected into his intravenous line to cause air embolism, collapse and death. But there's no evidence for that either.' This second theory drew on skin discolorations observed in babies in reference to a 1989 academic paper. It described the discoloration being caused by high-pressure ventilation, entirely different to injecting air at normal pressure. Dr Sandie Bohin, a second expert witness in the Letby trial who reviewed Dr Evans' conclusions, agreed with him but the sole surviving expert of the 1989 paper, Canadian neonatologist Dr Shoo Lee, did not. During an expert testimony in Letby's appeal in April last year, he said he did not believe any of the descriptions of the babies' skin discolorations used by prosecution witnesses matched that characterised by air embolism. Advertisement However, in her pre-trial notes, Dr Bohin said: 'My impression of the care afforded to [Child P] after the collapse on 24 June is that it was muddled. 'There were unacceptable delays in recognition and treatment of the pneumothorax, the ventilatory strategy used, and the use of a high-dose adrenaline infusion was unusual.' Both Drs Evans and Bohin, in their pre-trial notes, appeared to agree that the X-ray at around 8.10pm on June 23 - the day before Child P's death - showed his diaphragm had already been 'splinted', likely causing the collapse the next morning. Dr Evans had advised cops to investigate the night staff, though Letby had finished her shift earlier in the day. During his testimony in court, some years later from his writings in 2017, however, Dr Evans' opinion had changed. Advertisement The baby had appeared destabilised during the June 24 X-ray, but in his medical opinion in 2023, someone had given the baby an 'extra dollop of air' at 9.40am the next day. When questioned about his change of heart in court during cross-examination, he said: 'I think there was excess air given before the X-ray, if I could put it that way. 'Then I think that destabilised the baby, but I think he had even more air given into his stomach on the morning of the 24th. 'That, I think, is a more accurate way of explaining the sequence of events.' Moving in line with this new thinking, the prosecution had said the allegation was that Letby 'deliberately caused a problem' for Child P 'as she was going off duty [on June 23] so that overnight he'd have problems', which would divert attention from her if he died overnight. Advertisement Letby's defence team told Dr Evans: 'You've simply now shunted it along the line to a point near to, as it happens, when Ms Letby was on duty after the 8 o'clock handover in the morning.' The expert refuted the suggestion, saying he "cannot be accused of putting anyone in the frame" as his evidence also related to the night shift before Letby was working. Mr Myers said the medic had "invented" an "extra dollop of air" on the morning of June 24 to "take his theory over the line". "I haven't invented any dollops," Dr Evans responded. The court had earlier heard that a "mistake was made" by the prescriber of adrenaline on the day that Child P died, and he was administered with "precisely double" the intended dose. Advertisement But Dr Bohin said: "I don't think it had any adverse effect, in that the infusion was started after [Child P] had at least two of his collapses". Prof Gill went on to tell The Sun: 'It's very important to note that that child was in a very critical state. 'So those four doctors and nurses in that little room were not hanging around chatting, doing Facebook. 'They were busy with that baby for very good reason because he was having acute problems. He was in great danger. Unfortunately, they mismanaged his care. 'Those four people in that room did kill that baby by the treatment which they were being told to give.' Advertisement Prof Gill believes it comes down to Countess of Chester Hospital being understaffed, overrun and unsuitable for treating a baby like Child P, as well as his brothers. He pointed out Child R was removed from the hospital after the death of his two brothers and recovered - though non-Letby supporters would argue that was because he was no longer in the hands of the convicted nurse. Prof Gill said: 'O,P and R were triplets and extraordinarily exceptional triplets - they shared a placenta, they were identical… these babies were actually developing particular diseases which you only have with identical twins or triplets that share a placenta, and it's that the blood is not being shared evenly over the three babies. 'It puts them at incredibly high risk. Those three babies, their mum had antenatal care at Liverpool Women's Hospital, which is basically one of the best places in the world to have twins or triplets. 'So why did the doctors allow that mother to have those babies at Chester?" Advertisement
