Driver who hit nine cyclists in Mallorca, killing one, jailed for three years

Six years on from horrific collision which saw one cyclist die and several injured in Mallorca after a driver smashed into a group of German riders, hitting nine of them, the motorist responsible has been jailed for three years for manslaughter.

The Mallorca Daily Bulletin reported that Anais Marco was sentenced at a court in Palma, the prison sentence accompanied by an order for the driver and her insurance provider to pay €1million to the family of the cyclist killed and €213,000 to those who were injured.

During the sentencing, the judge said she had "disregarded the most basic diligence and all duty of care, which caused the collision with the peloton of cyclists, a fact that constitutes a serious violation of the rules that must be respected by anyone driving a motor vehicle".

Despite testing positive for marijuana following the fatal collision, Marco was acquitted of a charge of driving under the influence of narcotic substances as "there is not sufficient evidence to understand that the accused was driving under the influence of drugs".

"Testing positive does not mean being influenced by drugs at that time," the local press reports a forensic expert told the court. As we reported back in 2018 following the incident, Marco said she had smoked cannabis the night before.

The group of twelve cyclists from Germany were riding in the direction of Arta from their base in Font de sa Cala, Capdpera, when nine of them were hit by the driver who was travelling in the same direction in a Porsche Cayenne. Christoph Bohnen, 47, was killed and others injured. Two members of the group were taken to hospital in a serious condition, while six had minor injuries.

It was reported the Guardia Civil found the stubs of five joints in the vehicle, although Marco insisted that these were her boyfriend's and that she had not smoked on the morning of the collision.

"I'm not a drug addict who goes out on the road to kill eight people," she said. "When I was going to overtake, they were two in two, but suddenly four went in parallel, occupying almost the entire lane. Suddenly I see that I am on top of the cyclists and hit the brakes."

Around three weeks before the incident, Marco was given a fine for driving under the influence of drugs in March 2015. Her driving licence was also withdrawn for a year, but the ban had yet to take effect and she had been able to continue driving. She was also one of 19 people charged in the Llevant area in 2016, after 2.5kg of cocaine, 4kg of MDMA, 300g of speed and 300 marijuana plants were seized.

At the time of the fatal collision, the driver had claimed to be blinded by the sun and had been putting her visor down when she struck the group, however a local amateur cyclist told the Olive Press this did not make sense as: "The sun rises from the east. I'm from there, I'm a cyclist and I've gone through the place in question – the road is wide and there is one hundred per cent visibility."