A Spanish lorry driver on trial for his role in a fatal accident in which seven people died in 2022 has been jailed for 38 months by a Dutch court.

Juan S lost control of his vehicle and drove off a low dyke into a crowd of people who were having a barbecue on August 27, killing seven including an unborn child, and injuring seven more seriously.

The court ruled that S had been having an epileptic fit when he drove into the group in Nieuw-Beijerland, just south of Rotterdam. However, although that in itself is not his fault, he should not have been driving a lorry in the first place because of his condition, the court said.

In addition, the court said, S had not been taking his medication properly and had been using cocaine in the days before the tragedy. Cocaine can trigger epileptic fits.

The public prosecution department had called for a 4.5 year jail term. But the court said it did not accept prosecution evidence that the medication had affected his driving. In addition, the court said, S had waited almost three years for the trial to take place.

S, who was not in court to hear the verdict, has two weeks to appeal against the sentence.