Heartbroken dad of Brit girl, 7, who watched in horror as she was killed in speedboat crash ‘wishes he’d died instead’
THE devastated dad of the young British girl who was killed in a horror boat crash says he wished he’d have died instead of his daughter.
The distraught parent, named by local media as Bledar Avdia, witnessed the tragic crash in Albania that killed his seven-year-old daughter Jonada.
The youngster was fatally wounded while swimming with her father at Potami beach in Himara.
The pair were about 15 feet out when Jonada was struck by the speedboat in front of horrified onlookers.
It is alleged Tase was manoeuvring dangerously close to the shore in the borrowed RIB-style boat and lost control.
In a conversation shared with teacher Bislim Ahmetaj, the mourning dad said: “I should have died and not Jonada”.
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According to local media, police commissioner Tase, from Elbasan, was arrested on Tuesday afternoon.
He was due in court today after he was charged with manslaughter.
An Albanian police watchdog, the Police Oversight Agency, said Tase was driving the boat from Porto Palermo towards Potami with his family members also on board.
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The girl’s death sparked protests in the capital with hundreds gathering in front of the Interior Ministry in Tirana yesterday calling for better beach security and protection.
Demonstrators also called for the resignation of minister Bledi Çuçi, the General Director of the Police, Gladis Nano, and minister of Tourism, Mirela Kumbaro.
Hundreds of candles and flowers have been placed where Jonada lost her life, as well as in front of the Prime Minister’s Office.
The girl’s family is said to have been living in the UK for the past two decades and Jonada was born in London.