Man turns himself in over ‘hit-and-run’ death of Iraqi cyclist

AMMAN — A motorist reportedly involved in an alleged hit-and-run incident that killed an Iraqi cyclist on Queen Alia International Airport Road on Monday, turned himself in to police on Tuesday, official sources said.

Sahem Jreidi, 29, was riding his bicycle with a friend on the emergency lane of the airport road when he was reportedly struck by a speeding vehicle near Amman Waves at 7:30am.

A man walked into Jweideh Police Station and turned himself in to officers on duty, claiming to be the driver who was involved in the fatal incident, director of the Central Traffic Department, Col. Bassim Kharabsheh said.

“The suspect also pointed out to police a vehicle that was parked outside the station, a Black Nissan Altima, and said it was the vehicle he was driving [at the time of the incident],” Kharabsheh told The Jordan Times.

The traffic official said the vehicle was sent to the criminal lab for further analysis.

“The criminal lab collected evidence from the accident scene and will now examine the vehicle to determine if it was the same car involved,” Kharabsheh added.

In his initial testimony to the authorities, “the suspect claimed that he fled from the accident scene because he was afraid”, a second source said.

The source added that “he informed his relatives that he was involved in the accident and they convinced him to turn himself in”.

Kharabsheh said investigations are ongoing into the incident and “investigators will also work to make sure that the man who turned himself in was the actual driver”.