Driver freed as road victim fights for life
A LOCAL man who presented himself to gardaí after teenager Tara Houlihan was struck in a hit-and-run has been released after being questioned over 24 hours.
Tara, 17, is in a critical condition and it is ‘touch and go’ whether she will pull through, sources say. And even if she does, she could be left with permanent facial injuries.
Sources close to the investigation told the Irish Daily Mail that the man – a native of Greytones, Co. Wicklow, in his 40s – ‘appears to be an innocent party’ in what is being called a ‘tragic’ case. He most likely hit Tara, of Kilcoole, Co. Wicklow, ‘inadvertently’ and ‘drove away unbeknownst he hit a person’, sources said. She was only around 500 metres from home at the time.
The man arrived with a solicitor to Bray Garda Station on Monday morning. The Garda press office has since confirmed his release.
Gardaí have obtained ‘good-quality’ CCTV of the accident, which happened shortly before 4am on Saturday in Kilcoole.
Gardaí have ‘no reason to believe’ the driver was ‘under the influence of alcohol or drugs’ and there is ‘no indication’ he was driving dangerously. A senior source told this newspaper: ‘This was a tragic accident. The girl remains critically ill and fighting for her life with her family at her hospital bedside.
‘It is a sensitive case and more will become clear later. At the moment, everyone’s thoughts are with the young girl and her family.’
It remains unclear whether the DPP will direct criminal charges, but it is understood there is ‘sympathy’ for the driver, whose explanation that he was unaware he hit someone in the road is said to be ‘plausible’. The teenager is believed to have been on her way home from a party when she was hit.