The Metropolitan Police is set to review its probe into a fatal crash at a Wimbledon prep school which claimed the lives of two eight-year-old girls.
The decision comes after ‘angry, sad and confused’ headteachers lashed out at the Crown Prosecution Service’s (CPS) move not to charge the driver who killed Nuria Sajjad and Selena Lau.
The girls were enjoying and end-of-term party at The Study Preparatory School in Wimbledon, south-west London when a Land Rover driven by Claire Freemantle ploughed into the celebrations, fatally injuring them and wounding a dozen others
Last week, prosecutors revealed 47-year-old Ms Freemantle would not be charged with any criminal offence as she had suffered and epileptic seizure behind the wheel – in a move that outraged the families of Nuria and Selena.
And today both the current and former headteacher, who was in charge of the school at the time of last year’s crash, have criticised the police over its investigation and blasted the CPS’s move not to prosecute.
An £80,000 Land Rover crashed through the primary school’s gates during an end of term picnic, killing the two girls and injuring a dozen others
Nuria Sajjad (left) had been enjoying enjoying a tea party with her classmates to mark the last day of term when horrific crash took place. The crash also killed Selena Lau (right)
The school’s current Sharon Maher (left) and Helen Lowe, the former head in charge of the school at the time of the crash, have hit out at the decision not to prosecute the driver
In response, the Met Police told MailOnline: ‘Having listened to concerns from the families of both Nuria and Selena – and other parties affected – we are committed to addressing their questions, and the Specialist Crime Review Group (SCRG) will therefore be carrying out a review of the investigation.’
The Met said its officers had worked ‘tirelessly’ to investigate every detail of the tragedy.
However, Sharon Maher, the current head at Wimbledon school, questioned this and said: ‘It didn’t look that way to us.’
Former head Helen Lowe – who vividly recalls the carnage following the crash and comforting a fatally injured Nuria and her mother – said she hadn’t even been called as a witness by the police.
Speaking in her first interview since the tragedy, she told the BBC: ‘No, I think the words ‘thorough’ and ‘tireless’ suggest that you would have a body of evidence that you would be able to share… but in some areas there was just a complete lack of knowledge, of basic information.’
Ms Maher added the school had to wait nearly a year for the decision, which came just 10 days before the anniversary of the girls’ deaths on July 6, 2023.
And Ms Lowe said the victims and school had been ‘let down’ by the Met and its inability to answer some of the questions from bereaved families, school parents and staff.
‘Maybe when they [the Met] go away and look at the evidence, they will remember the answers,’ she added. ‘But there were a number of occasions where they weren’t sure if something had been done, or they couldn’t remember.’
Nuria’s mother Smera was also injured in the horrific crash that took place just after this photo of them was taken
Selena Lau playing piano at a school concert shortly before tragedy struck last July
After the CPS decision the girls’ grieving families said in a statement that ‘justice has neither been done, nor has been seen to be done today’. They said they remained ‘unconvinced’ the police probe had been conducted thoroughly.
In a joint statement, Sajjad Butt, Smera Chohan, Franky Lau and Jessie Deng – the parents of Nuria and Selena – said: ‘All the victims of the events of July 6 2023 did nothing wrong.
‘We were all in the safest place we could have been outside our own homes. We were celebrating a day filled with joy.
‘Nuria and Selena’s lives were taken in a moment. So many lives were also irreparably shattered in that moment.
‘Hundreds of people – parents, teachers, children, neighbours, friends and family members – will never lead “normal” lives again. Some of us will never experience joy again.
‘We have tried to keep faith in the systems and institutions that are supposed to protect victims and deliver justice to those affected. We have been disappointed by this system. We have already expressed, publicly, our dissatisfaction with the pace of the investigative process.
Flowers and toys placed outside The Study Prep school in Wimbledon, south-west London, after the incident
Nuria, who would have turned nine on March 20, is pictured with her loving parents Smera and Sajjad
‘It is now clear to us that the depth of the process is questionable too. In the absence of any concrete evidence to the contrary, we can only surmise that the investigation has been equally poor.’
Trevor Sterling, lawyer for the families, added: ‘This is disappointing; justice must not only be done, but seen to be done.’
Last week the CPS said there was nothing to suggest the driver could have predicted or prevented the tragedy, and therefore they would not seek a criminal prosecution.
Speaking out following the CPS’s decision, a grief-stricken Ms Freemantle expressed her ‘deepest sorrow’ and said she had ‘no recollection of what took place’ after losing consciousness because of an epileptic seizure at the wheel.
Specialist officers at the scene of the incident last July
The Land Rover crashed through a fence at The Study Prep school in south-west London at around 10am on July 6, 2023
Detective Chief Superintendent Clair Kelland insisted ‘significant inquiries’ had been carried out by a team of ‘specialist officers’ which established Ms Freemantle suffered a ‘previously undiagnosed seizure’ that caused her to crash
‘Having carried out a detailed examination of her medical records, we know that she couldn’t have predicted or prevented the incident,’ she added.
‘The consequences of this were, as we know, absolutely devastating and the hurt and pain that followed will always be deeply felt.
‘I can understand that some may be confused – perhaps even feel let down – by this outcome and want to give every reassurance that our officers worked tirelessly through every detail of the incident to ensure a complete investigation be passed to the CPS.
‘To bring charges in cases like this there needs to be an element of responsibility on the part of the driver, and, given the circumstances, this was simply not borne out on this occasion. What happened that day was a very tragic accident which has had a profound impact on the lives of a number of people.
‘While our priority has been to support the affected families – including the further six families of those who received injuries – we have also remained in close contact with both the school and local council representatives throughout, updating them on the timeline of the investigation while maintaining the integrity of our inquiries.’