Driver guilty over Moray crash that killed five people

An Italian tourist has been convicted of causing the deaths of five people, including his four-year-old son, in a crash in the north east of Scotland.

Alfredo Ciociola, 50, drove a minibus onto the wrong side of the road and collided head-on with a car on the A96 near Keith in July 2018.

Three passengers in the car were killed, along with Ciociola's friend Frances Saliba and his son Lorenzo.

Ciociola was convicted of causing death by careless driving after a trial.

He had denied the more serious charge of causing death by dangerous driving.

The three people who died in the car - Audrey Appleby, Evalyn Collie and Edward Reid - had been returning from a dancing event at the time of the crash.

The car's driver, Morag Smith, was seriously injured.

Ciociola's wife Concetta Passanisi was also seriously hurt, but their three-year-old son Frederico escaped with minor injuries.

Frances Saliba's husband Francesco Patane also sustained serious injuries.

Ciociola was extradited from Italy after failing to attend an earlier court appearance in Scotland.

The naval officer will be sentenced at a later date, and was remanded in custody.

At the High Court in Edinburgh, just Lord Mulholland told him: "You have been convicted of a serious charge, involving the deaths of five people, including your own son, and the serious injury of three people. It is a very serious matter."

Ciociola had denied that he had fallen asleep or repeatedly driven onto the wrong side of the A96.

He was asked during the trial how he felt about three people dying in the other car.

He replied: "It is the most terrible thing that you can hear and the pain of the families is also my pain."

After the crash, passers-by, including circus performers, alerted emergency services and tried to help the victims.

Acrobat David Amoll told the trial that he used a sledgehammer to break a rear window of the minibus.

A colleague went into the vehicle and brought out two children. One was unresponsive, while the other was covered in blood and was crying.

Morag Smith, who was driving the other car, said Ciociola had never taken responsibility for his actions.

"I know he didn't set out that day to kill anyone but he made such huge mistakes," she said in a statement.

"I believe he deserves jail time - but even if he is, no length of time behind bars will compare to what we have suffered."

She said the only positive from the verdict was that she could "finally focus on my recovery, on my grief and on rebuilding some kind of future".

Ms Smith and her passengers had been travelling home from an Elgin Country Music Club dance when the crash happened.

Club president Billy Main said he had been "totally shocked" by the tragedy.

"They were very nice people," he said.

"It's the worst thing that's happened to the club. It was unbelievable."

Police Scotland Chief Insp Andrew Barclay said: "This was an incredibly distressing incident which has impacted on so many lives since it happened four years ago.

"It is a stark example of the consequences of driving while unfit to do so safely. In this instance Alfredo Ciociola continued to drive, despite being tired and ultimately, he fell asleep at the wheel, leading to this tragedy.

"It shows how any lapse in concentration while driving can result in tragedy.

"The impact of this incident on everyone who responded on the day and also on the wider community cannot be underestimated."