The driver of a heavy-duty truck that crushed a 71-year-old woman in Muea, Buea, on Thursday, December 19, is in police detention awaiting trial for involuntary manslaughter.
He is currently in police custody at the 3rd District Police Station in Muea, following a tragic accident that claimed the life of Mama Ambe Suzanne.
As the story goes, Ambe Suzanne, a familiar plantain farmer, had just completed selling plantains at the market and was crossing the road to return home when the tragedy struck.
Eyewitnesses recount the moment the woman found herself trapped under the massive vehicle.
“When we came outside, we saw her legs under the truck,” a distressed witness shared.
“The space she was trying to pass through was tight. The truck crushed her leg as the driver reversed.”
The victim’s family, neighbors, and the Muea market community are left in shock and sorrow.
“This morning, she sent her grandchildren to the market with two bunches of plantains. After finishing her sales, she told us she was going home,” recounted another witness.
“It’s hard to believe that just moments later, we heard her screams under the truck.”
Despite frantic efforts to alert the driver, it was too late to save her.
Her lifeless body was eventually recovered and transported to the Buea Regional Hospital Mortuary.
At her family residence on Bakery Street, Quarter 3, Muea, Buea, grief engulfed relatives and neighbors as they struggled to come to terms with the loss of a woman they described as kind, hardworking, and an integral part of the community.
The driver, whose identity is yet to be disclosed, remains in custody as investigations continue.
Authorities have urged drivers and pedestrians alike to exercise caution, particularly in congested areas like markets, to prevent such tragedies.
